So It Begins: A New Life
by Ethereal Bliss
Summary: He was alone. Since the beginning, he disappeared from society. Neglected, forgotten, hidden, his life had lost its meaning. He wishes to escape from everything within his life. However, something will change that. Forever...
1. Chapter 1: Business

**Author's Notes: This is a prologue for an upcoming FanFiction I intend on doing. Also, this is my first as well. Enjoy.**

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Kim Tae Hoon exited the bus and approached the Inchon Orphanage. It was a hot day but that didn't stop him from shivering as it was his first day on the job and he was nervous. He examined the place. It wasn't exactly a run-down building but it was past its former glory days, whenever that was. Pacing himself, he took deep breaths as he walked towards the entrance doors. As he entered, he was embraced by the cool air inside of the building. Inside, there were some people waiting for their appointments, a couple who were reading, and those who were just simply dozing off. Tae checked his wristwatch, a gift from his brother. 11:25, _I'm on time._ After giving the front desk receptionist a simple wave and nod, he made his way towards the Administrator's Office.

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After climbing a couple flights of stairs _(Damn, they have no elevator) _and walking down several hallways, he finally reached the room. Tae, with a nervous heart, knocked on the Administrator's office. In a couple seconds, the door opened, revealing a very neat and well composed Caucasian man probably in his late-forties.

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"Welcome Mr. Kim.", the Administrator said with a smile that washed away all of Tae's nervousness. "I hope the bus ride here wasn't too bad for you."

"Oh, not at all Mr. Administrator. It was a fine trip from Seoul." Tae replied.

"I see. I'm glad to hear that and please enough with formalities, just call me Jean." _For such a professional looking man, he's actually pretty laid back… So far, so good._

Jean moved away from the door and moved to his cupboard. Tae took this time examine the office. Various awards and medallions were hung across the wall. There was a shelf filled with various files and books ranging from child care to child psychology to Shinigamis and Vampires… Shinigamis and Vampires… Huh… _HUH!? Wait a sec! What kind of book is th-_

"Would you like some tea or coffee, Mr. Kim?" asked Jean, head still in cupboards, clearly unaware of Tae's small revelation.

"Wah… uh… I mean, AHEM! Tea please." Tae said, voice a little shaky, moving his head away from the "book".

"Alright then. Mr. Kim? Your voice seems a bit… unnerved. Are you alright?" Jean looking back at Tae.

"Oh... Um, I'm fine!" Tae exclaimed, trying to avoid eye contact with the Administrator.

"Are you sure? You seem a little pale in the face. Should we change the appointment to tomorrow?" asked Jean, coming with a tray of tea, face full of concern.

"NO! I mean… No sir. I am fine. Thank you." Tae said, settling down in a nearby couch, accepting the tea.

"Well. Alright. Let's settle down for business." Jean said, sitting down in front of Tae.

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He violently awoke from his nightmare. The same nightmare he had been dreaming for the past ten years in his miserable life at the orphanage, in confinement. He held his cold, pale hands to his face wincing at the reminiscence of the dream. He could feel their presence in the room. "GO AWAY!" he yelled. But they wouldn't. He could feel their eyes carving into the back of his head and back as he heard their voices. He then, felt cold. Really cold. Soon, he started to cry silently.

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_**TEN YEARS AGO**_

_It was a fine, Saturday evening. Warm and mild, it was a night to enjoy. The five year old boy held onto his mother's hands as she was swinging him back and forth on the sidewalk. The two were walking home after the boy's preschool performance and they were enjoying themselves now as they were several hours ago. From a bystanders point of view, it seemed as if this was the perfectly happy family._

"_Sukki?" the mother asked as she stopped swinging the child as she ruffled through his silvery long hair._

"_Yes mommy?" the boy replied, his innocent little face and silvery blue eyes beaming into her chocolate brown eyes._

"_Are you happy?" she asked._

"_Yes! Of course!" the boy replied back eagerly._

"_I'm glad to hear that." She said._

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_They were walking through the community park. It was becoming darker as evening drew up its curtains to the world. They continued walking until they started to pass the playground and the swing sets. Especially the swing sets._

"_Mommy? Can I ride the swings?" asked the boy_

"_Now, now Sukki… it's getting la-"_

"_PLEASE?~" asked the boy, using his cute face, trying to convince his mother._

"_Oh, alright but just for a little bit." She finally said, chasing after the boy as he ran towards the swings._

_She started to push him as he finally got onto the swing set. He started screaming with glee. He loved the swings, especially when his mother pushed him. The two were enjoying themselves too much, that they didn't notice a dark figure, looming several meters behind them._

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"_Mommy, I can do the swings by myself now. Look!" the boy bragged as he showed his mother that he could._

"_That's good Sukki. Mommy is going to sit on the bench over here so come back here when you are done, okay?" she replied._

"_Okay!" He said, swinging higher and higher. It was truly exhilarating for the young one as he rode the swings. The feeling of euphoria, of sailing through the air… Oh how he wished he could fly like the birds of the sky…_

"_Mommy, look at me! Look at how high I am up" the boy exclaimed._

_No reply._

_The boy thought his mother hadn't heard him so, he repeated himself._

_No reply._

_The boy waited until his swing came to a halt. He jumped off the seating and ran towards where his mother said she would be. Strangely, all the lamplights for the park were off. _Mommy said she would wait for me right over there, _the boy thought to himself, running towards the bench._

_When he arrived, his heart dropped._

_His mother was gone._

_That wasn't all. There were scraps of ripped fabric on the surrounding grass. The boy reached for a piece and found it wet… Not with water… But with blood… The metallic blood smell was now definitely in the air. The boy was now having cold sweat appear on the back of shirt and neck._

_Then, he froze, paralyzed with fear._

_He had seen it. _

_The hollow._

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He woke up once again, sweating profusely. He must have fallen asleep while crying to himself. Sighing, he got up. After brushing away his silver bangs, he propped himself to the wall. He had already seen enough of his nightmare. Looking at his only possession, a silver watch that was a gift from a past friend, he saw that it was 3:00 AM. _Sigh, I had enough of sleep. Guess I better get started already. _Upon saying this, he got out of bed.

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"So wait a minute. This orphanage, isn't just any orphanage?" Tae asked with surprise nearly spilling most of his refilled tea.

"Yes, you are quite right." Jean replied coolly, without flinching at Tae's sudden response.

"Let me get this straight. Inchon Orphanage is an orphanage… and a mental institute? For orphans?" Tae asked once more.

"Precisely. You see. Many orphans we come across aren't… what would you say… in an exact mentally healthy state of mind. Now, those orphans, oh those orphans, they tend to cause a… how would you put it… a hell of trouble around here. So in an effort to solve that, we built a mental institution along with this establishment in effort to help those poor children." The Administrator finished.

After listening to the Administrator's words, Tae began "I see. So… About my position…"

Jean replied almost instantaneously, "Oh yes! Your position!" From previous interviews and your resume, it appears that you have a major in the Human Psych? Correct? Also, I heard word from your previous professors and peers that you have… a gift for speaking with people. Correct?"

Tae blushed a bit, "If you put it that way, yes. I seem to have a knack of doing so."

The Administrator pulled out a silver-blue file from his desk and laid it out in front of Tae on the table. He began to open it.

"What's this, sir?" Tae asked, filled with curiosity.

"Oh this?" Jean said with a rather suspicious grin, "This is the patient you will be working with."

Jean laid out the file, opened on the table in front of Tae. The file showed detailed information on a certain person in the orphanage. He had long, silver hair, had silver-blue eyes, and pale skin. He was fifteen years old and it also noted that his body was abnormally cold yet, functioned correctly. There was a wealth of information on this boy, yet, his name wasn't on the file.

"Who is this young man, sir?" Tae asked.

"This boy… He is Patient No. 1087."

"And his name if I am may ask?"

"His name… is Daisuke Shirai.


	2. Chapter 2: Patient No 1087

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: I appreciate the reviews for my last chapter. Thanks go to uub and koolken256; I appreciate your reviews and words of advice. Also, I have made some updates to my previous chapter. Enjoy.**

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Daisuke Shirai. That name had a ring to it. It was as if it was on newspaper headlines before. Kidnapping? Not possible. Murdered? Unless he came back to life or something, that was improbable. Tae looked at the boy's face again. He looked sad and depressed.

It had been a week since the meeting with Admin Jean; Tae had begun to get adjusted to his new workplace. Today was going to be the first day for him to meet Daisuke and it was going to be a private and confidential. Many of his new coworkers would shudder at the mention of the boy's name. _Why? _Tae wondered. He had read that Daisuke had a severe mental condition but that shouldn't mean that one should simply cower away because of the name itself. But he let go of the thought and began his long descent down towards Shirai's room. _Damn stairs, why can't they put in elevators._

As he approached the room, he noticed that there was a security team positioned outside of it. As Tae got in view, one guard asked to do a body check to which Tae reluctantly agreed. _What is this? Why so much precautions? _Sigh…_ No matter. _One of the security personnel mentioned to him that the room will be under surveillance throughout the session. Sigh… _So much for privacy…_

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Daisuke lifted his head in the dark, still hearing the voices, when he had received the word over the speaker. "You will have a visitor soon. Please be ready.End of message." _Sigh, _he thought bringing his hands to his ears, tightly shutting his eyes. _They're still here. I can hear them. Oh God… I wish they'd just leave me alone and let me go... I just wish this would all just stop. _He then slumped back onto his bed and began to wait.

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After security gave clearance to Tae and he entered, a hooded man watched from the surveillance screening room, Daisuke's file in hand.

"Is this the one you are looking for?" Admin Jean asked.

Without looking up from the file and the screens, he replied, "Perhaps. Let's proceed with the test."

"Yes. Of course." Picking up the microphone, Jean said, "Tae, you may begin."

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The room was pitch black. Tae waited until his eyes adjusted to the darkness. He examined the room. There were crumpled papers littered all over the ground. There was an outline of what looked like a piano in the far corner. Other than these things, the room was rather… empty to accommodate a patient. Then, Tae then saw him. Well, although he couldn't see details, he could make out the outline of the patient's body. Tae straightened himself out and approached Patient No. 1087.

"Um… Ahem. Hello Daisuke. My name is Tae, I am here to help you." He said, reaching out his hand.

No reply.

"Well… Okay then." Tae said, feeling a little uneasy at the forming of the present situation. Pulling his hand back, he took out a notepad, a pen, and a pocket flashlight.

"Okay, Daisuke. I'm going to start by asking a cou-"

"Do you see them?"

"Wha-What?" Tae asked, surprised at Daisuke speaking and his question. "What do you mean, 'see them?'"

"THEM." Daisuke said, pointing into the far corner. "Do you see them?"

Tae looked into the corner he was pointing at. He could see nothing there but just a couple of cobwebs and wads of crumpled paper.

"I'm sorry Daisuke, but I don't see anything. But, what do YOU see?" Tae asked as he wrote notes. _Patient sees things that aren't. Possible signs of severe mental disorientation._

"…"

"Daisuke, it is fine if you don't want to answer. I'm here to help you."

Still no answer.

_Sigh. This is going to be a lot harder than I thought…_

Tae stood up. Folding away all of this belongings, he got ready to leave. He then used his flashlight to check the time on his wristwatch. It was 2:37. _Guess I might as well just lea-_

"That watch." Daisuke spoke. "I've seen it somewhere."

Tae turned around in an instant, facing him. "This watch?"

"Yes. That watch… It was on a soul I encountered…"

"A what?!"

"A soul. It belonged to a young boy that I once saw." Daisuke replied, who's voice showed no hint of a lie.

Yet, Tae found this hard to believe. "Wait. You see souls?" he asked. _That is impossible. This was a gift from my brother. There is no way that this is possible._

"Yes. I do."

Pointing towards the corner once again, he asked solemnly, "Do you see them?"

Tae shook his head, feeling a bit uneasy. "Sorry. No."

"… Where did you get the watch Tae?"

"It was gift from my brother."

"… I see."

Then, Tae thought up of a question. It was one that was totally irrational, yet, he had an urge to ask.

"Daisuke?"

The boy nodded his head in the dark to show he was listening.

"When did you start seeing spirits?"

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The hooded man, observed the conversation between the two. Things were getting quite… Interesting… However, he had seen enough. He had more important matters to attend to, one involving a boy who could see spirits. He picked up the file and stood up, getting ready to leave. He looked at Jean and said, "I shall send a letter to you in a couple weeks, regarding the patient."

"Leaving already?" Jean asked standing up along with the other man

"Yes. I have something I must attend to. And please. Let's keep this meeting confidential."

"Done." Jean said opening the door.

"Excellent. Farewell… Jean." The man made his way out and vanished as Jean closed the door to the room.

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_He turned around and bolted down the sidewalk. He ran from the creature standing over his mother's corpse. He ran and ran. Yet, it seemed as if time itself had frozen itself. There was a flash and a loud clap of thunder. It had soon begun to rain._

_Then, he fell._

_As he tried to get up, a cold, leathery appendage had wrapped itself around his ankle. He fell down hard once again. He turned around and saw it again. Those monstrous teeth, the gaping hole in the abdomen, the hideous limbs sticking out from behind the behemoth, and the strange markings that went across its entire body. But, most of all, its eyes. Black. Pure, empty darkness. __**Eyes**__. If he was in a good mood, he would have joked that eyes looked as if they were drawn by one of his classmates and would have laughed it off. However, it wasn't that time. __**Eyes**__. Those eyes struck sheer terror into his heart and had paralyzed him. He was going to die. Not later. Now._

_Then, darkness._

_When he had come to, he realized he was very much alive. But he was cold. Very cold. He saw where his mother was been slain. Unable to bear the sight any longer, he ran. He ran farther and farther away. Away from everything. Death. Fear. And the cold. Especially the cold. But then he realized… it would never really go away. Ever…. _

_**Those eyes… Oh… how he simply hated those eyes.**_

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Tae had begun wrapping up his meeting with Daisuke. He had tidbits of information on how Daisuke began seeing souls and when he began to. Of course, this was still all too puzzling for him, but with notes intact, he decided it wasn't a job badly done, especially with Patient 1087.

"Daisuke," Tae began.

Daisuke lifted his head in response.

"We are going to meet again next week, at the same time. Are you okay with that?"

He nodded, showing his approval.

Tae got up to leave but not before being stopped by Daisuke. Tae was rather surprised. Daisuke was rather quick on his feet. _One second on his bed, the next, right behind me by the door, huh… _Daisuke handed Tae a folded piece of paper, to which Tae graciously accepted.

Then he left the room.

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The Administrator congratulated Tae in the office for a job well done.

"We had so many people who went in there, trying to talk to him" he began to say. "Most of them ended up getting injured." Yes. The people did receive injuries but very peculiar injuries; frostbite was a very strange example.

"Well, all-in-all, I am pleased with your progress Tae."

"Thank you sir." Tae said, feeling good about his minor "achievement".

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It had become a fine day for Tae. Not only was he the first person to ever manage to speak to Patient #1087 but he had also received a cash bonus for his hard work. Admin Jean had also given Tae authorization to visit Patient #1087 without continuous security checks and said he would remove the security personnel.

Tae exited the building with a skip in his step. His efforts in finding a suitable job had been proven successful. His previous jobs were… not very satisfactory for him AND his family. He quickly pulled out his phone as he made his way pass the Inchon Orphanage sign towards the bus stop. He had to call his parents to make sure that they knew that he was doing a fine job. After dialing, he waited.

_The number you have dialed is busy. Please try again later._

_Oh well, _he thought to himself glumly… _I'll tell them later…_

After reaching the bus stop and sitting down next to two business people, he relaxed. It was going to be a fresh new start for Kim Tae Hoon. He was finally going to receive the recognition he had desired for so long in his life. His brother, Hyun-Joon was always the one being praised. Valedictorian for four years straight in high school. Scholarship to Stanford University. Hyun-Joon this, Hyun-Joon that. It was finally his turn to be praised.

He tried calling his parents again.

_The number you have dialed is busy. Please try aga…_

_Damn it. Still not picking up. Huh, probably praising Hyun-Joon for curing cancer or some of his other "amazing achievements". Oh well. Congrats bro for whatever you did. You have my-_

"Did you hear?" one of the businessmen asked.

"About what, my friend?" The other man replied

"The murder involving that child, Lim Sang-Hyun."

"Oh that one? What about it?"

"They caught the culprit"

"Did they?"

"Yes! They found his tools and getaway vehicles. Apparently, Sang-Hyun was the son of a rich CEO, and the man was poor."

"Ah… Another innocent soul lost…"

Tae was getting annoyed. They were talking and talking. He wanted peace and quiet. He then saw a newspaper underneath the bench, eagerly, he reached for it, trying to use it a means of distraction from the two yapping businessmen.

On the headlines it said in bold, **MURDER CASE SOLVED: CULPRIT BROUGHT TO JUSTICE**

_Oh well… Might as well just read it…_

… Lim Sang-Hyun… son of Lim Sung-In… Murdered… 3 weeks ago… Body found in dumpster… possessions stripped…

"Have you heard. The murderer?"

"Wasn't he that one successful businessman who seemed to be talented in everything yet failed at his recent projects?"

"Yes. It's him"

"Really?! Could it be?"

"No doubts."

Tae continued reading.

Getaway vehicles used… Murderer found… Discovered hiding in an apartment in Pyeongchang… Several officers were injured… His name is…

"His name is…"

Tae froze as he heard and read the name.

"Kim Hyun-Joon"

**Then, the phone rang.**


	3. Chapter 3: Revelations

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: *Whistle* 113 views! I am pleased with current progress of my story. Thank you-s for all the people who took their time to read my FanFic. Reviews are appreciated. Thank you koolken256 for your review. Please enjoy.**

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Tae stared out the window, gazing at the passing country landscape, thinking of what to say. He was on the bus ride to Ulsan Prison. He had received the letter that his brother, Hyun-Joon, was incarcerated there and wished to set an appointment with him. So, Tae cleared all of his appointments for that day at the workplace, much to Admin Jean's disappointment, and set out to see his brother, whom he hasn't seen or talked to in several years. He recalled the frantic phone call from his parents several days ago. His parents were in a state of shock and couldn't speak straight. Tae rushed home that day. Since that day, he, too, couldn't comprehend the situation. This was just all too surreal. _How could this happen? _Tae thought to himself…

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He shuffled his feet along the long corridors of the prison. The guards were trudged him along to the room where he was supposed to meet and talk with his brother. He was still having a hard time walking straight due to his injuries upon capture, yet, he still mustered up the energy to write up an appointment for him and his brother. He finally arrived to the room with much effort. The staff had enough decency to unhand cuff him. Then, they nudged him into room, sat him down, and left. Kim Hyun-Joon waited patiently behind the glass pane. He examined his current state. He was in an empty room with nothing but a chair and a window to the world outside. He looked at the glass. _Bulletproof. Ain't breaking through these with my bare hands… _He'd been in tough situations before… He knew he could get out of this one. _All I need to do now… Is wait for Tae-Hoon, _he thought, chuckling to himself.

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Tae exited the bus. It was another hot day, but even the sun couldn't warm him up. He felt a little uneasy about this arrangement. _It's for my brother, _he thought to himself._ He'd do the same… I think… Maybe not… Hmm…_ _Might as well…_ He finished the thought and made his way pass the courtyard to the reception room.

Tae was led by a tight-lipped officer towards the room. Upon opening the door, Tae said thank you, but the officer replied with low gruff and left.

_Alright then?... _

Tae sat down in the chair and faced Hyun-Joon, and much to brother's amusement, he was horrified by the state in which his brother looked. Hyun-Joon was a well-polished and composed businessman the last time Tae saw him. Now, he looked a like a drunk who just lost at a bar fight and was thrown out onto the streets. His hair and face was unkempt, his eyes bloodshot, and he seemed to have gained some excessive weight from the last time they met.

"Hello Tae. Long time no see." Hyun-Joon said, with a smile, revealing his yellowed, nicotine stained teeth.

"Uh-er… Hey… Hyun-Joon…" Tae started, apparently at a loss for words.

"…"

"…"

"Surprised of what has become of me?"

"Surprised would be an understatement."

"Smart-ass…"

There was an uncomfortable silence for a several minutes as the brothers looked at each other.

"You seem to have changed a lot, brother" Hyun-Joon said, trying to begin a conversation. "Doing well?"

"Actually, yeah. I am."

"That's new…"

"Well… No shit."

"So… what business are you working in right now? Don't tell me you work at Lotte World dressed like that."

"NO. I don't work at Lotte World as the janitor anymore. I am actually a mental therapist at Inchon Orphanage."

"Not too shabby, baby brother."

"Shut up."

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While the conversation between the brothers continued, none of the prison staff noticed a black clad uniformed group of armed men sneaking into the facility. Mainly because outside security consoles had been deactivated and all of the armed security personnel posted outside had been neutralized earlier by inside agents. The leader of this group, referred to as "Boss-man", positioned his men outside the inmate sector C building.

"Our objective is simple, we unleash hell, and amidst that, we get his ass out of here. Understand?"

The group all nodded simultaneously.

"Let's begin, brothers." Boss-man said.

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_**SEVEN YEARS AGO**_

_It was a sunny day. It was the kind of day when someone should go out and enjoy the world rather than sit and front of their computer and type. But also, this was a very important day for Tae. He was graduating High School with high marks on his final report card and a scholarship to Seoul University, the school for the best of the best, well, in South Korea of course._

_After receiving his diploma, hugs from fellow classmates, and even flowers from a special someone, he made his way toward his parents._

_They were on their phones, busy talking to Hyun-Joon and congratulating him for success in his business abroad. Hyun-Joon booked a flight and was suppose to come to Korea in a few days._

"So mothe-" _Tae began before being cut-off by his mother._

"Be quiet. I'm talking to your brother."

_Tae waited until his parents were done._

"When do we leave?" _his father asked. _"We have to go home and get ready. Your brother is coming home in a couple days."

"Mother. Father." _Tae began to say._

"Be quiet Kim Tae Hoon! Why can't you have the mannerisms of your brother?"

_**Brother.**_

_Tae stood still and quiet while his parents continued talking about being like his brother and discussing his successes._

_After getting home, Tae threw away everything he had received today, even the roses, into the trash._

_**Brother.**_

_That night when his parents were asleep, he then packed up all of his possessions and stole some money from his parents. He then took their car keys and drove off. He wanted to be as far away as he could from this place. He wasn't wanted here. Kim Tae Hoon didn't belong here. Kim Hyun-Joon did._

_**Brother.**_

Mom, dad, Hyun-Joon…. I hate you all.

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The two brothers were now laughing within their conversation.

"You have no idea Tae…" Hyun-Joon said, trying to contain his laughter.

"Guess I don't Hyun-Joon. I'm not a dirty, penny-pinching, lying scumbag drunk like you." Tae retorted, he too, laughing.

They laughed for a while longer… Then the all the laughter subsided and silence filled the room once again.

"Do you know why I am here, Tae?" Hyun-Joon began again, breaking the silence.

"Let me see. You murdered Lim Sang-Hyun, stole all of his belongings, and you-"

"That's not all Tae."

"Wha-What? What do you mean?"

"While I was struggling in the United States, I discovered something."

_Struggling? Since when? _"What?"

"That society is filled with sleazebag business owners who will do anything. ANYTHING. To get what they want."

"Like you?" Tae said, trying to laugh it off.

However, Hyun-Joon's eyes weren't filled with such playfulness as before. They were dead serious.

"No. I WAS CHEATED! I WAS LIED TO! THEY SCAMMED ME FOR ALL THE GOOD WORK I HAD DONE! ALL IN THEIR EFFORTS TO GET SOME COIN TO SATISFY THEIR APPETITE FOR MONEY!

Tae was taken aback. He had never seen his brother so angry before. That and him saying that he was struggling? This was all too new for Tae.

"So what did you do, Hyun-Joon?"

"What did I do, Tae?" Hyun-Joon smirked. "The better question would be, what DIDN'T I do?"

Tae's eyes widened. "What d-do you mean?"

"Kidnappings. Murders. Strikes. Sabotage. You name it. All of those… to those who made me suffer."

"Then Lim Sung-In…"

"Don't even MENTION that pig's name."

"…"

"I kidnapped his son. Why? To make a point to him of what I would do to people who aren't honest."

"But then why did you kill-"

"Why did I kill him? Because Lim Sung-In doesn't care. His public face shows a man who would do anything to help the world. But really, he's just another shady business owner, desperate for income. Only after did they discover the corpse did the Pig respond."

"What did he say?"

"Good riddance."

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_**THREE YEARS AGO**_

_It had been four long years since Tae had left home. His parents never called him upon finding him gone. _"Good riddance." _He recalled his parents saying. Nothing was ever good enough for his parents. The expectations he had to live up to because of his brother. _

_He had never called or visited his parents since the day he left. Whenever his brother tried to reach him by phone, he would simply ignore it. _"Good riddance" _he would say. _

_He was his own man now. He had freedom and liberty. No more parents. There was no expectation to live up to. His life, his choices, no one else interferes. _

_However, these times were hard. Jobs were hard to come by and every time he'd find one, by some freak occurrences, he would get fired. Still, there wasn't anyone telling him how bad he was and how good his brother was. That was all that mattered. With that intact, Tae was fine._

_Or so he thought._

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Boss-man and his team had freed at least a thousand inmates of the prison. The commotion had caused a dispatch in heavily armed service-people. But really, that wouldn't stop him or anyone. He had the numbers on his side. The guards were quickly overrun. He then stopped one of the prisoners and asked, "Do you know where Kim Hyun-Joon is?"

"He was led to see his brother in Meeting Room 137"

"Thank you." He said, handing a hand-gun to the man. "Use it well my friend."

And with that, he and his men were off.

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Tae had his hands to his face. No. He refused to believe it. His brother… was a serial killer… and damned infamous one too. _How… How could this have happened…? To all the people on Earth, why him?_

"Tae?"

Tae tore his hands away from his face and stared at his monster of a brother.

"Do you still have that wristwatch?"

Tae raked the damned thing off his wrist and threw it into the hatch, handing it over to Hyun-Joon.

"You can have it back. I don't want to have anything that reminds me of you."

Hyun-Joon examined the wristwatch. Then, he started undoing the screw on the bottom.

"I knew I would have to use this one day." He said, pulling out a long thin wire.

"What are you-"

"You'll see baby brother, you'll see."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**2 Years Ago**_

_Tae was in deep trouble. He had borrowed A LOT money but he had no money left to return. His house, car, and other possessions were at risk. He realized that at this point, he might lose everything he had strived for._

_He sat alone at his desk, listing and looking through the options he had. He saw his final choice. __**Go back to them**__**. **__He had told himself that he would never need them again. They didn't need him either. They had Hyun-Joon… However looking at his present circumstances, he realized he didn't have much of a choice. He when to his phone, dialed their phone number._

"Mom? It's me, Tae-Hoon."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The security guards positioned at the surveillance room saw, much to their horror, the rampaging inmates wreaking havoc onto the prison. The superior of the two told the other guard to evacuate all people in the meeting rooms. The other man nodded his head and rushed out the door. The remaining officer observed all the camera feeds and then, he saw it. Room 137, the man with the garrote wire. He had to warn his mate. He swiftly reached for his earpiece.

He never reached it.

It's actually quite hard to warn someone when your throat is being slit by intruders.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae began hearing loud sounds and screams. _What is going on? _He stood up and went to look out his door. _Nothing had reached this side yet._ He made his way back to his seat.

Hyun-Joon stood up and then started laughing as he examined the time on the wristwatch.

"Heh-heh. They're on time."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**1 Year Ago**_

_Tae had been studying at Seoul University for the past year and a half. He was the Number One in all of his classes from the beginning to the present and seemed he would graduate early. But the class he was truly the best in… was psychology. This class made him realize everything. His wrongdoings. What his parents truly were to him. They loved him and supported him, through that, he came this far._

I wonder how Hyun-Joon is doing…

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The guard started running down the hallway as fast as he could. His superior officer had told him to get the people in farthest room out first. _Room 137. Okay. I got to warn those people._

He reached the door, fumbled with the keys for a moment and rushed in.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The officer had rushed into the room and began yelling, "We have to leave now!"

Tae asked, "What's going on, Officer?"

"There is some kind of prisoner revolt going on. The inmates are armed and dangerous. We must evacuate all people out, come on! Let's go!"

There was a door connecting Tae's and Hyun-Joon's rooms. The guard went to the door to unlock it for Tae. However, he was unaware of the swift movements behind him.

"There. It's unlocked. Come on!"

"OFFICER! WATCH OU-"

However, Tae was too late. Hyun Joon had the wire around the man's throat in a flash. Tae watched helplessly as he saw the innocent man being dragged into the darkness behind him. The man was going to die.

"HYUN-JOON! STOP! STOP YOU BASTARD! STOP! NO! STOP!" Tae screamed, pounding on the glass.

The man struggled, but to no avail. Blood was gushing out from under his chin as the wire had cut into his jugular vein and deeper. There was no way the man would survive. He was as good as dead.

After what seemed as an eternity, the man fell to ground, still bleeding and eyes still open, motionless. Hyun-Joon wiped his hand on his shirt and examined his handiwork.

"A job well done I suppose. Don't you think?"

"… You bastard."

"Oh, grow up baby brothe-"

"You're not my brother… You're a monster."

"Yeah. We all are." Hyun-Joon said, with a devilish grin revealing sharp teeth that Tae hadn't noticed earlier. He searched the dead man and took his handgun, some ammunition, and his baton. He then dragged the corpse and made his way outside.

Tae was frozen to the spot he stood. He stared blankly beyond the glass pane.

_What has become of you Kim Hyun-Joon…_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Admin Jean was watching the events unfold via the Television Broadcast Channel 7: Breaking News. He sat at his desk, arms folded, eyes glued to the screen.

**ULSAN PRISON BREAK… HEAVY CASUALTIES… INMATES ARE RUNNING FREE… DANGER…**

Then, he turned the TV off. He set the remote control on top of the newspaper with headlines of **MURDER CASE SOLVED: CULPRIT BROUGHT TO JUSTICE. **

_Well, well, well, Kim Hyun-Joon. So you got yourself out of yet another predicament. Nothing less than expected._

Leaning back into his chair, he pulled out a file. On the file was Hyun-Joon's face.

_So what exact monster are you?..._

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**(A/N): I know. I know. I am going way too in depth with Tae's story rather than Daisuke's. Please bear with me. The next chapter shall explain some more about Daisuke's and his… abilities. Thank you to all of those wonderful people who read my FanFic.**

**~Sayonara~**


	4. Chapter 4: Daisuke

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: I apologize for the content of the last chapter once more. Here is a chapter all about Daisuke. Enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke was wide awake when he had been told over the intercom that his meeting with Tae was canceled this week due to some… urgent issues. _No matter, _he thought to himself. Daisuke lay against the wall. He felt cold. He was always cold. However, feeling cold for him was like being cast into a warm, relaxing bath. He wasn't used to it at first but as time went on; he had grown accustomed to it and then actually started to enjoy being that way. That was Daisuke's little comfort in his cell.

He then looked over to his right corner. There they were again. The spirits.

More often than not, the spirits just randomly came into his room, still scaring the living hell out of him as they did for his entire life. Many of the souls were victims of unjust murders and their bodies (?!) were in the same mutilated state as they were… _alive? No… dead_… He couldn't understand. Why him? Of the billions of people on Earth, why was he the unlucky one? Why did he see spirits when others can't? This made him look as if he was mentally insane. The truth is he wasn't. He didn't belong here. He wanted out. But sadly, if he still referring to the truth, that was impossible.

The spirits would occasionally talk to him. They asked him to help them. Help. How? How do you help a dead person? He'd ignore their cries of help much to his sorrow and sanity. It was deemed early on for him that helping these… people… were impossible. He had no choice but to do so. Also, if he were to talk to them, his detainers would think he has reached some mental climax point. However, secretly, he wanted to help these people. He wish he had the power to do something for them. But all he was was a powerless fifteen year old that was put into a place he didn't belong.

That was until he met the wristwatch boy.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**Several Weeks Ago**_

Daisuke had the pillow over his head. He didn't want to hear their cries any longer.

_Help me… Help me… Save me… Save me…_

He looked up from his bed to find out that there was a new spirit amongst the "Denizens of the Cursed Corner." The spirit was that of a boy. He wasn't asking for any help. The boy was in a crouched position with his legs to chest, staring into the corner and not at Daisuke. It was truly a pitiful sight, even for a soul.

Daisuke got up and went to the boy.

"Hey."

"…"

"What's your name?"

"L-Lim Sang-Hyun"

"Nice to meet you, Sang-Hyun." Daisuke said.

The boy didn't say anything nor did he turn around to see Daisuke.

"How did you die Sang-Hyun?"

The boy looked at Daisuke. Daisuke froze for second then composed himself together. The boy had no lower face yet he could still talk. His eyes appeared as if they had been gouged out and seared back together… _**THOSE EYES**_… The boy's overall entire face was mutilated beyond recognition. It was truly a grotesque sight, however, Daisuke didn't care. It WAS a boy after all.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**Several Days Ago**_

_Lim Sang-Hyun was having another usual day. School came to a close and he decided to do homework with several of friends in the library. After they had finished, the boys went to the park to play some soccer together._

_The game was intense but his team of rag-tag soccer players won the bout. After they had finished, the boys started to walk home_

"Today's game was awesome."

"Yeah. We totally creamed the other team."

"Hopefully, we can pull it off again tomorrow…"

"Of course we can! We're the best! No one can beat us when we are together!"

_The boys all high-fived one another, laughed, and continued walking._

_On the way home, the boys saw an ice cream truck and all decided to eat something to celebrate and commemorate this day of their victory._

_The boys bought their ice cream and continued walking again. However, Sang-Hyun lived on the east side of Daegu whereas his friends lived on the west. So, taking separate paths, Sang-Hyun headed home, alone._

_While walking, he thought about his life. He lived in a home with no parents. His parents were always busy and at work. He had no one to talk to at home. He had strict curfew enforced by the maids and housekeepers. But what bothered him the most, his parents simply didn't care about him. He wasn't stupid. He saw them always going out to places, leaving him behind. Buying expensive things, Sang-Hyun wasn't even given an allowance._

_Sighing to himself, he continued walking home. _

_Then, strangely enough, the same ice cream truck he saw earlier was several meters in front of him… From quick observance, the vehicle was empty. _

_Sang-Hyun decided it wouldn't hurt to look inside of it._

_He opened the doors and climbed into the back of the truck._

_That was his last memory before death._

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke listened to everything Sang-Hyun had said.

"When I woke up, I saw my body…" He began to say

"I-it was... just discarded like trash."

Daisuke quietly looked at the boy.

"I'm sorry for what has happened to you Sang-Hyun…" He stood up and made his way back to his bed before something caught his eye.

"That watch…"

Sang-Hyun lifted his left arm (or what was left of it) to show Daisuke.

"This? This was a watch I bought myself for my eleventh birthday."

"How old are you Sang-Hyun?" Daisuke asked.

"I'm twelve."

_Oh God…_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Although he may have already been deemed mentally ill, Daisuke regularly talked to Sang-Hyun. There was no one who would come in for his "appointments" because the last person had a… _tragic_ accident.

_Thank you Coldness._

Daisuke started to enjoy the company of Sang-Hyun more and more. He disregarded the fact that he was soul and he was a human. They became close friends. They were two lost souls that were misunderstood in solitude. But thanks to one another, they opened up to each other.

"Hyun?"

"Yeah, Daisuke?"

"Are you sad that you died?"

"Well. Not really."

"Why, Hyun?"

"Because I met you."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke woke up excitedly. He wanted to talk to Sang-Hyun about something important. He quickly jumped out of bed and rubbed his eyes. He called out Sang-Hyun's name.

No answer.

_No. Not this again. PLEASE. NO!_

Daisuke opened his eyes and saw that Sang-Hyun was gone.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke lied in his bed, silently crying over his friend's sudden abandonment.

_What did I do wrong this time?... _

He cried himself to sleep that night.

The next day, Daisuke found something written on the wall… in blood.

_**Thank you**_

And there was something else… A silver watch…

_Sang-Hyun… Thank you…_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke leaned against the wall, smiling at the thought of the flashback. He was happy but sad as well. Sang-Hyun was the closest thing he had to a brother in his life at this place and he was gone. But Daisuke believed that Sang-Hyun went to a better place. Far better than the one he had already died in. With that in mind, Daisuke was okay. He picked up the silver wristwatch and fumbled around with it. He then, rested his head against the wall.

He wished to be free. He wanted to see the world again… His world. The world that he missed for so long. He wanted just one day out there… Just one day.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**9 YEARS AGO**_

_He had sleeping inside a cardboard box when they had found him. The people carried him in his sleep and drove him to the orphanage. At such a young age, the young boy was being bullied by other kids at the facility because of his strange appearance. Silvery-blue eyes, long silver hair, and pale skin. He was the official tag line of all jokes going on when he arrived._

_He hated it. He hated all those other kids. But especially their leader, Takeshi._

_One day, Takeshi had gone too far._

_He grabbed Daisuke's hair and raised him up by it. Along with that he proclaimed, _"Look at this absurd creature. Look at his appearance. I bet he thinks he is better than all of us! Look! He doesn't speak or fight back!"

"Hit him Taki!"

"Punish him!"

_With a devilish grin, Takeshi ordered his friend Ryo to get him a pair of scissors._

"THIS SHALL BE A LESSON TO YOU!"

_SNIP SNIP SNIP_

_Daisuke's silvery white hair fell to the ground after each scissor snap. When Takeshi was done, everyone laughed Daisuke and his laughable haircut. Ryo brought a mirror for Daisuke to see himself in. _

_He was horrified. He wanted to cry. But he knew if he did, it would make it worse for him. So, all he could to do was to walk away from the crowd._

"Where do you think you're going yatsu?"

_It was Takeshi._

"Seems you haven't learned your lesson. How about I beat it into you? Absolutely free?" _Takeshi said while kicking Daisuke in the stomach._

_The kick took Daisuke off of his feet. It hurt a lot too. However, he stood up and walked away. He refused to fight. _

"HEY! GET BACK HERE, YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

_That was the last straw._

_Daisuke could be insulted, have his hair cut horribly, and be beaten up but nobody, NOBODY, insults his mother._

_He turned around and leapt onto Takeshi so quickly, no one realized what was going on. Daisuke put his hands around Takeshi's throat and began to choke him. An aura of cold began to come off of Daisuke's body. Takeshi's friends tried pulling off Daisuke but they all screamed in agony. Their hands were frozen solid. Takeshi tried pushing Daisuke off but he couldn't. He was losing consciousness. Then he felt an instantaneous surge of cold spread throughout all of body, inducing excruciating pain. Then, darkness._

_Takeshi was dead._

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_After the incident, Takeshi was heard to have been unceremoniously buried in the backyard of the Orphanage. His friends had their hands amputated due to the unimaginable cold and frostbite. Daisuke was punished severely. He was to be put into solitary confinement. He was not allowed to exit the room EVER. He was also removed from the adoption list. _

_Daisuke couldn't believe what was happening to him._

_HE was the victim._

_HE was only defending himself._

_HE didn't do anything wrong._

_But, HE was punished._

_HE would never see outside again._

…_. HE wanted to die…_

_**Then, they started to appear. The souls.**_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke woke up shaking. That was a memory worth forgetting. He got out of bed and went to the sink for a glass of water. After drinking, he made his way back to bed. He laid down and closed his eyes.

"**Hey. Do you see me?"**

His heart started pounding and he quickly opened his eyes and sat up straight.

"**Hey. Over here."**

Daisuke looked in the direction from where the voice came from, still startled by the sudden greeting.

Daisuke saw a young man in a black shihakusho armed with a sword. _What is he…_

"Who are you?" he asked.

Grinning he replied, **"The name is Shinnosuke. Shinnosuke Yamada. I am a Shinigami**

**(A/N): Sorry for ending the chapter here. I know this chapter wasn't that good. But bear with me guys. I shall continue Daisuke's story in the next chapter. In the mean time, thank you for reading. Sayonara~**


	5. Chapter 5: A Chance at Freedom

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: I apologize for the length of the last chapter. Here is the next chapter to make up for the last. Daisuke will still be in this chapter so don't panic. And please, enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae arrived home late that night. Because of the ensuing chaos that was unfolding back at the prison, there was a traffic jam with tons of people who were panicking over the prison uprising. And to top it all off, he was in a state of shock and fatigue.

He greeted his anxious parents with a simple nodding of his head as he made his way to his room. Upon opening the door, he collapsed onto his bed and fell asleep without bothering to change out of his clothes or clean himself up. While lying down something that Hyun-Joon replied to him had crossed his mind.

_**"You're not my brother… You're a monster."**_

_**"Yeah. We all are."**_

_I'm not like you Kim Hyun-Joon. I'm no monster._

With that, Tae passed out.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_He ran down the long, dark corridor, breathing heavily. He heard the heavy footsteps behind getting louder by the second. He was running as hard as he could, away from the monster._

"**I HEAR YOU… I SMELL YOU"**_ A voice began to say again. _**"I SEE YOU…"**

_He ran faster and faster. His legs were starting to ache._

"**WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING?"**

_He crashed into something and was completely blown off balance. He was thrown several meters back. He scrambled to get up but when he looked up, he saw it._

_That thing… was standing right in front of him. It made its way closer to him._

"Stop! STAY AWAY FROM ME!"

_The thing continued its approach._

_He couldn't move. _

_The thing drew closer._

_He tried to get up but failed miserably._

_The thing stood in front of his face. Out from the dark, it was close enough to see its details._

_Then he froze… the thing… Was Hyun-Joon._

"**WHERE ARE YOU GOING BABY BROTHER?" **_He asked smiling, revealing a series of sharp serrated teeth, stained in red, as he inched closer. His appearance started to change. Hyun-Joon increased in size. Several long, black limbs sprouted from his back. His eyes fell out of their sockets, revealing pure black, hideous ones. A gaping hole appeared for where his heart should have been._

_Tae screamed in horror as the beast swiftly sunk its teeth into his neck._

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae violently woke up, still shaking from the nightmare.

_It was just a dream… Just a dream…_

However, it seemed all too real.

Tae got up from bed to check the time. It was only 2 AM. He decided it was best to clean himself up before going back to sleep. He took off his jacket and threw it onto his bed. Then, he proceeded to take a shower.

After everything, Tae came back into his room, ready to sleep. He came to his bed and picked up the jacket, only to see a white note fall out of his pocket.

"What the…"

_Oh. Right. Daisuke gave me this._

Tae realized that he forgot to remove the paper since the day he got it. He decided that he might as well just open it up to read it. He began to open it.

_Huh. Wonder what this is…_

Then his heart stopped upon fully opening the note.

It was a picture horrid beast from his dream.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The two stood silently looking at each other. Shinnosuke was rather surprised that this **human **could see him.

Daisuke decided to break the silence. "You asked me earlier whether if I could see you or not. Why?"

The Shinigami was rather taken aback by this question, **"Well… I AM a Shinigami."**

"Wait, so… You're telling me, that you are a God of Death?" Daisuke asked.

"**Well, yes and no." **The Shinigami replied.

"I thought all Gods of Death were skeletons with scythes…"

"**Well. Whoever said that must have had a really creative imagination."**

"So no one else can see you?" Daisuke asked, piquing with curiosity.

"**Not everyone. Some are talented enough to see me as well."** The Reaper replied back.

"Wait a second. So you're like a soul?" Daisuke asked, pointing towards the corner.

Shinnosuke was surprised as he just noticed the corner filled with several souls.

"**I AM a soul." **He answered, making his way towards the corner.

"What are you doing?" Daisuke asked, a bit worried.

"**You'll see." **Shinnosuke answered coolly.

"Help me…"

"Save me…"

The Reaper pulled out his sword from its sheath and approached the first spirit.

"**Don't fear any longer. For what awaits you is not hell. It is the Soul Society."** Shinnosuke told the spirits. **"Peace is with you on your journey. Farewell."**

With that, the Shinigami stamped each spirit, one-by-one, with the bottom of the hilt of his sword. Then, after a blinding flash of light, the souls were all gone.

Daisuke just watched in awe.

"Wha-What was that?" he asked, still trembling.

"**That, was a konso."**

"… What is a konso?"

"**A konso is a spirit funeral that leads that leads the wandering soul to the Soul Society."**

Daisuke stared blankly at the empty corner for a moment. He was in a feeling of ease as the spirits that haunted him for what seemed an eternity were now gone.

"What exactly is the Soul Society, Shinigami?" Daisuke asked.

"**The afterlife pretty much. And really, just call me Shin", **the man replied.

"What's it like… In the Soul Society?"

"**Well… It's a place where you will never go hungry and you'll always be happy."**

"Practically, you are free, right?"

"**Well. As long as you don't have strong spirit energy…"**

"Spirit energy?"

"**Daisuke. How do you think you can see spirits and Shinigamis?"**

Daisuke took a moment to think about the question that he himself didn't know the answer to.

"I never understood why. I always thought it was a curse put upon me…"

The Soul Reaper leaned himself against the wall as he sheathed his sword.

"**Sigh. Daisuke, my friend, you have IMMENSE spirit energy. What makes it more amazing is that you are a human."**

Daisuke was still for a moment. He didn't know what to say. For his entire life, he believed that his "ability" was a curse. But now, it sounded as if it was a blessing.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Why were you put in here Daisuke?" **the Soul Reaper asked, curiously.

"I got in a fight here after only being here a couple days." He replied, wrapping his arms around himself from the horrible memory earlier.

"**No. Before that. How did you come to Orphanage? What exactly happened to your parents?"**

Daisuke sighed. He hated going through his cursed past but he didn't have much of choice. It was the truth after all.

"I never really knew my father. And my mother was killed by a horrid beast with a hole in its chest. These people found me sleepi-"

"**Wait. A creature with a hole in its chest?"**

"That's right."

"**That 'creature' would be called a 'hollow'.**

Daisuke blinked several times. "Hollow?"

"**Yes. A hollow. A spirit who has fallen to darkness. As a Soul Reaper, it is my duty to sublimate all hollows that endanger the balance of the spirit and real world.**

Daisuke was silent. The creature that destroyed his life ten years ago was a fallen spirit… called a hollow.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

There was unsettling silence for a while. Daisuke composed himself after several minutes and decided to break the silence.

"So how did you get in here Shin?"

"**Just happened to. The Senkaimon just opened here. Guess I may have made a miscalculation during my exit." **Shin replied. He too, unaware of how he happened to get in.

"Let me guess. The Senkaimon is some sort of portal that connects the Soul Society to the real world."

"**Yep." **Shin answered; He was a bit surprised that Daisuke actually got it right.

"Well then, can you open it up again and just leave me alone?" Daisuke asked, a bit annoyed.

"**Nope."**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke checked the time. It was 3:45AM. He'd been pacing around the room for almost an entire hour. _Great. Not only am I confined in this room, but I am stuck in here with a sword wielding God of Death that doesn't know how to get out of here either. Brilliant. Just Brilliant._

"You swear you can't just open up the Senkaimon?" Daisuke asked pleadingly.

"**Pretty sure I can't. I don't have the authorization to do so." **Shin replied, showing absolutely no emotion in voice tone.

_Damn it… _

"**Well, it was fun talking to you Daisuke. But now, I got to get to work." **Shin said, getting up from the wall.

"Wha-WHAT?! You could've left all along?" Daisuke exclaimed.

"**Yes. I could have. But you didn't ask me to leave my way. All you asked was through the Senkaimon." **Shin replied, oblivious of Daisuke's slight anger in his voice.

Walking towards a wall, the Soul Reaper unsheathed his sword and chanted, **"Open, Mugen no Muko."**

At that moment, the sword began to change shape. Instead of looking like a standard katana, its appearance became dark as night; the blade became several inches longer, the hilt, too, increased in size. The sword looked as if it didn't belong in this world due to its darkness.

Shin put the tip of the blade against the wall. **"****Chiheisen ni katto****." **He said while sliding the blade down the wall.

Then, a tear appeared on the wall. The tear seemed to lead outside, to the world beyond. Daisuke saw this and was in awe at how much the world had changed since he last saw it.

"Amazing… You opened up a portal to the outside."

Shin noticed Daisuke's facial expression and what he had said.

"**From what I understand, you've been here a long time… You haven't been out there in years… right?"**

"Yes…"

"**I'm sorry to hear that…"**

"It's fine, Shin. Just go and do whatever a Shinigami does…" Daisuke replied, a tinge of sadness in his voice.

The Soul Reaper felt genuinely sad for the human as he made his way toward the tear. This human should enjoy the world. Not be a prisoner to it.

Stopping several inches in front of the tear Shin asked **"Do you wish to be free Daisuke?" **ashe brought his sword up to his shoulder.

Daisuke looked up to the Soul Reaper sadly. His face clearly showed that he wished to be. Yet, he didn't say anything.

Fumbling around with his hair and breathing loudly, Shinnosuke Yamada made his decision.__

_**Sigh. I am going to be in so much trouble from my superior officers…**_

Looking at Daisuke, straight in the eyes, the Soul Reaper asked, **"Daisuke. Would you like to become a Shinigami?"**

Daisuke's eyes grew wide. "Do you mean… Me to become a… How?" he asked, excitement lingering in his voice.

"**The way to become a Shinigami… is to run into my Zanpaku-to." **The Soul Reaper said, lifting his sword, having a hint of mischievousness in his voice.

Daisuke just stared, jaw dropped. "Zanpaku-what? Wait, Shin, I don't think-"

Too late. Shinnosuke already delivered the blow. There was no blood, no scream, no pain.

Just blinding light. And strangely, ice. Lots of it too.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After the light had cleared, Shin lowered his hands from his eyes. He realized that he no longer held the sword. He saw that he was still in his black Shihakusho and his Zanpaku-to was sheathed at his side.

_**At least he didn't absorb all of my spirit energy. I heard Rukia Kuchiki of 13**__**th**__** Company did the same as I. THAT human absorbed nearly all of her energy. Captain Ichimaru is not going to be happy when he discovers my course of action… Huh, guess you only die twice…**_

"**Daisuke?..." **Shin couldn't finish his sentence for what had stood in front of him.

His Shihakusho was pure white and the sleeves were longer than the standard size. Bits of ice still remained wheeling through the air. Now, the Zanpaku-to was what awestruck the Soul Reaper. It seemed as if the entire Zanpaku-to had changed from its predecessor.

It was white as snow. One side of the hilt curved upwards whereas the other curved down. The handle was covered with ice. The blade was curved and thin as it widened towards the tip. In the middle of the hilt was a glowing azure stone.

He opened his eyes.

"What do you think?" Daisuke asked.

"… **I've never seen someone with a white Shihakusho or being able to harmonize with their Zanpaku-to for their first time into its Shikai form…" **Shin replied. _**You are a strange human, Daisuke Shirai. Very strange indeed.**_

The two were silent for a time being, shifting side to side at the passing time.

"**What are we waiting for? Let us go see the world beyond these walls." **Shin finally said, reopening the tear in the wall and jumping through it.

"Yes. Let's do so…" Daisuke said, swiftly moving towards the tear.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The journey through the tear was quick and painless. In no time, Daisuke Shirai, the unlucky Soul Reaper-turned human who had been confined for what seemed an eternity, was finally free. For the first time in ten years.

The world… was breathtaking.

Breathing deeply, he immersed himself to the world around him.

"**Feels different doesn't it? The world beyond those dull white walls?"**

"Yes…" Daisuke replied softly.

Shin then pulled out a very old-fashioned cell phone that was ringing.

"**Hollows. Nearby our vicinity." **He said, pulling out his sword.

"H-hollow?" Daisuke asked, jumping when Shin talked. He almost forgot that the Soul Reaper was there. He also started shuddering away. The memory from ten years ago. The rain, the blood, the cold. He quickly shifted his mind away from the painful memory.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Daisuke cried out after Shinnosuke started making his way toward the area of the most concentrated hollows.

"**There are some hollows that need sublimating. I'm here to do it."**

"Then what about me?"

"**Come on. Unsheathe your sword. I'll teach you the ways of the Soul Reaper." **Shin said, reaching his hand out to Daisuke. This was the first time someone reached out to him.

Daisuke, feeling genuinely happy for the first time since the incident, took that hand.

Smiling, _**That's a first**_, Daisuke said, "Let's go."

**(A/N): I shall expand this story further. So don't worry. Oh, and I'll be away for several days, I am resuming school after my Spring Break. I am so sorry, but there won't be as many updates in the following week. Sorry again but I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

**~Sayonara~**


	6. Chapter 6: The Training Begins

**Author's Notes: Sorry for the late chapter. I had school as mentioned before. Oh, I updated the previous chapters for some errors and a significant story-related mistake was corrected, if you will, check out the earlier chapters. Thank you all for reading my FanFic. Please, now, enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

They leapt across the night skies of Inchon. It was simply a beautiful night. But there was work to do. Shin had sublimated all of the hollows while Daisuke watched in awe. Each Zanpaku-to strike that Shin had swung was a killing blow and after each hit, the hollow's essence of being just simply disintegrated right before his eyes. It was truly an unbelievable sight to behold.

They landed on the rooftop of an abandoned building. Both, seemingly out of breath, sat down to rest.

"H-how… how do you…?" Daisuke asked, trying to catch his breath after so many leaps.

"**How do I what?"**

"Kill the hollows…"

The Soul Reaper raised up his night-black sword. **"It's really simple actually."**

Daisuke, raising an eyebrow, asked, "Reeaaaally… How?"

With a swinging motion and a finishing cut in the air, the Shinigami replied, **"All you need to do… Is to swipe at the head. Not from the front, but towards the back of the head."**

"Why exactly? Why the back?"

Shin lifted his sword and muttered, **"Mugen no Muko, Chikaku o Ushinau." **Almost immediately after the phrase, the black-clad Zanpaku-to turned back into its original form, a standard katana. He then, sheathed the sword.

"**The reason… is to not reveal the face beneath the mask…"**

"The face?... Wait a minute, what mask are you talking about?"

Shinnosuke looked at Daisuke, a hint of annoyance on his face.

"**Daisuke. We've been out here for several hours now. Don't tell me that you can't distinguish a hollow and its mask."**

"Uh… What?"

Shin face palmed himself. **"Daisuke. As I mentioned before, a hollow is a fallen spirit. They have a mask formed from reishi, spirit matter, concealing their true face. Therefore, slicing the mask itself will-"**

"Reveal the face underneath. I got it. But why though?"

Shin leaned against the railing on the roof. **"Daisuke. What if the person behind the mask was a person you once knew?"**

Daisuke thought about it for a moment. _Takeshi… Ryo… No problem._ "Honestly Shin, I've been confined for ten years. I don't know anyone but the people I hate."

"**Ahhh…," **Shin swore softly, **"Suit yourself…"**

The two sat in silence.

"Oh. Shin."

"**What?"**

"My Zanpaku-to…"

"**What about it?"**

"Why is it… white and covered in ice?" Daisuke asked, examining his sword actually for the first time. It was very different from Shinnosuke's Mugen no Muko.

"**Well… A Zanpaku-to is unique to itself. It's appearance and powers are reflected upon the Shingami's soul and strength..."**

"Based on my soul and strength…" Daisuke muttered to himself, bringing his pale hands to his face.

_The Cold… The ice and snow… The white blade… They are related… _

The only part that was strange to Daisuke was the glowing blue stone in the hilt.

"… **A Zanpaku-to's personality is based on the user as well."**

"Wait. Since when did swords have personalities?"

"**Daisuke, Daisuke, Daisuke… A Zanpaku-to isn't an ordinary spirit-cutter. Let me explain…"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

While the two Soul Reapers were conversing, they both failed to notice a hooded man standing in the distance.

"Daisuke Shirai. You have changed. I can feel the different presence in the air." The man spoke to himself. Then, the man grinned.

"I can't wait to see your results…" he spoke softly. "It shall make everything more… interesting… Your letter shall arrive soon once everything is… finalized… Until then… I shall observe you closely." With that, the man turned around and disappeared without a trace.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"So a Zanpaku-to is born with the Shinigami… and dies with it…" Daisuke finished.

"**That's about all you need to know." **Shin said, flipping his hair around.

Daisuke looked at his Zanpaku-to. "Does it have a name?"

"**Oh! Right!" **Shin said, slapping himself in the face for about the fifth time.

"**When you learn the name of your Zanpaku-to, you must be able to synchronize and harmonize with it. If you do that, you will be able to achieve Shikai and, if trained hard enough, Bankai."**

"Shikai and Bankai…?"

"**We'll get into detail for that later… What matters now… is that you have already achieved Shikai as a novice Shinigami."**

"Wait. I already did?" Daisuke asked, raising his sword.

"**Does your sword look like a normal katana to you?"**

"…"

"**Your blade is the embodiment of your Zanpaku-to's soul."**

"Then a Shikai is…"

"**The first stage of harmonization and communication with your Zanpaku-to…"**

"How do we communicate with our Zanpaku-to?"

"**You first need to learn the name, then you must do Jinzen, sword meditation…"**

"I don't recall calling upon the name of my Zanpaku-to…" Daisuke said, trying to remember the time when he first became a Shinigami.

"**Did you hear anything when you were first synchronizing with the Zanpaku-to?"**

Daisuke searched through his memory. He tried to pinpoint if he heard anything on impact with Shin's Zanpaku-to.

"…..."

…_Tōketsu sh__ir__a yuki__…_

Daisuke heard the name in his head. He listened hard for it again.

_I am __Tōketsu shi__r__a yuki__…_

"Tōketsu shira yuki… That's your name." Daisuke said aloud without even realizing. He then began conversing with his sword.

Shin smiled to himself. For a novice Soul Reaper, Daisuke was learning fast.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The two leapt back to the orphanage after a lot of training. Daisuke had been doing Jinzen for several hours, communicating with his Zanpaku-to, before arriving back. Shin opened a tear into his cell with his Zanpaku-to.

"**It was one hell of a night, huh?" **Shin asked, sheathing his sword.

"You could say that…" Daisuke replied, stretching as he made his way back into his dreary cell.

Daisuke looked back at the world one more time before making his way towards his bed. He was quite surprised to see what was on his bed.

His body.

"Uh… Shin?" Daisuke asked, after recovering his train of thought

The Shinigami peered into the tear, **"What?"**

"How do I get back into my human body?"

"**Just pick it up and stand behind it… Simple." **Shin replied, playing with his bangs.

"Oh." Daisuke said, sheepishly picking his body up and his soul entering it.

It was a weird feeling to be back in his physical form. _I wish I was still a Soul Reaper…._

Daisuke sat on his bed, picking up and toying with Sang-Hyun's silver watch. Strangely, now, he felt a strange presence radiate from the wristwatch. _Probably nothing. _He set the wristwatch on his nightstand and sat against the wall.

"**I'll be back tomorrow. We shall continue your training further." **Shin said, preparing to exit the tear on the wall.

"Wait. How can I become a Soul Reaper again?" Daisuke asked, his eyes wide.

Shinnosuke raised up his sword, **"Well… You know… You could always be stabbed again…" **Daisuke face turned paler than what it already was (much to Shin's amusement). **"Or… here." **Shin said, tossing a brown badge to him.

"… What is this suppose to be?" Daisuke asked, examining the battered, old badge.

"**It's a substitute Shinigami badge. I found one being tossed around in one of the storage rooms at the 3****rd**** Division Barracks. Guess I was lucky enough to keep it… Oh, all you need to do is hold it to your chest for several seconds and you'll be in your Soul Reaper form soon enough." **

"Oh. Thanks." Daisuke said, setting it down on his nightstand next to his wristwatch.

Grinning, Shin said, **"No problem." **And then, he entered the tear and left.

Daisuke laid back into his bed and let out a deep breath.

_I think I can get used to this_.

With that, he smiled to himself and fell asleep.

**(A/N): SO SORRY FOR THIS CHAPTER! I had some problems go on throughout this week and it was really hard for me to actually think up with a new chapter to type up. I promise to get out a new Chapter before this week ends and I'll upload it ASAP. Reviews are appreciated. But until then…**

**~SAYONARA~**


	7. Chapter 7: It Pains Me

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: Yeah, yeah. I get it. Last chapter sucked. I hope this chapter will make it up to you. As always, reviews are appreciated and please, enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Do you see them anymore?... The spirits?" Tae asked Daisuke, notepad in hand.

Daisuke was quiet. He continuously stared at the corner, unblinking. Then, he said, "No. Not as often as before…"

Tae quickly scribbled some notes onto the notepad, _Patient #1087 claims to not see as much "spirits" anymore. Could be true… Could also be false…_

"Tae?..." Daisuke asked, shifting his eyes away from the corner, staring directly into Tae's eyes.

Tae shifted uncomfortably in his seat, trying to avoid those silver-blue eyes. There was just something simply… unnerving about them.

"Uh-h… AHEM, what is it Daisuke?" Tae said, trying to avoid eye contact.

"Do you believe in spirits?"

Tae was taken aback by the question. He sat silent and still for several seconds.

"Was brought up to, yes. But I don't believe the possibility of lingering spirits just wandering around…" Tae said, unsure of what else to say.

With his knees at his chest, Daisuke sat still, apparently thinking intently about Tae's response. He then closed his eyes and again, was still.

"Your idea of impossibility doesn't mean it is not possible…" He said, breaking the tension of silence, again, staring into Tae's eyes once again.

Tae didn't know what to say.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae packed up all of his belongings upon finishing his meeting with Daisuke. However, while packing, he noticed a crumpled piece of paper resting by his foot, several papers actually. He picked one up.

"Daisuke. What's this?" Tae asked as he began to fold open the paper.

Daisuke didn't say anything; however his body posture became rigid. But it was as if he was frightened.

When Tae unfolded the paper, he too, froze. The picture brought back the memory of the nightmare in the dark corridor. All he could do was stare.

"Da-Daisuke?..." Tae began, "Wh-what is this?" He tore his eyes away from the paper, crumpled it up, and threw it into the shadows.

Daisuke sat up, bent over the bed, and picked up each wad of paper. He unfolded each one, every single one of them having the same beast with the appendages, hole in chest, and hideous eyes. With them all, Daisuke began tearing each one to pieces, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

Tae could do nothing but watch as the boy was filled with such un-witnessed rage. He noticed something irregular however; there was a slight formation of small ice crystals at the lines of each rip.

Daisuke was breathing heavily. He then brought a hand up to his face. He began to sob softly.

"I'm sorry Daisuke. I didn't mean to…" Tae didn't finish the statement.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Several minutes passed. The sobbing seemed to cease. Then silence. Tae leaned against a wall and pulled out a cigarette. He pulled out his lighter and lit the cig. He inhaled deeply, allowing the cigarette to have full effect inside of him.

"… It killed my mother…"

Tae pulled the cig out of his mouth. "The beast…?"

"It ruined my life… It brought me here" Daisuke's voice continually rising.

"Daisuke… how is it-"

"YOU'VE SEEN IT TOO!" Daisuke suddenly yelled, shocking Tae. He almost dropped the cigarette.

"I KNOW YOU HAVE SEEN IT! I CAN SEE IT IN YOUR EYES! DON'T LIE TO ME TAE. YOU KNOW YOU HAVE!" With the statement, the air around the cell began turning cold.

Tae, oblivious of the frost forming around him, put the cigarette into his mouth only to find out that his cig had burned out. _Dammit…_

Daisuke put his hand through his hair. The cold around the walls receding back. Then, he composed himself.

"… I'm sorry." Daisuke finally said to a pale-face Tae.

Tae couldn't say anything.

"Tae. Where did you see the beast?"

Still, no color returned to his face. However, Tae found his voice.

"…The beast came to me in a dream…"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke fell back onto his bed. Several hours had passed since his discussion with Tae. The beast… The… hollow… Tae said the beast was his brother, but his appearance changed… Into the hideous monstrosity Daisuke last recalled seeing that fateful day.

_It just doesn't add up… Hollows are fallen spirits. They are dead. They are supposed to be dead… Tae's brother Hyun-Joon is alive. The last time Tae saw him was at some sort of prison incident. Did Tae's brother… No… The beast I encountered was over ten years ago…_ _It's impossible_… _How?_ _How do we see the same beast but we are from completely different backgrounds? Tae's was from a dream… But mine was what actually happened… I don't get it… this is all too confusing…_

Daisuke massaged his temples. The thinking was tiring him out. _But it's best that I don't think about this… Might as well get some sleep._ With that thought, Daisuke closed his eyes and fell to a dreamless slumber.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Hey. Hey, Daisuke. Wake up." **

Daisuke rubbed his eyes and saw Shin's grinning face right in front of his. He was also upside down, floating in the air

There was a long and loud scream in Cell #1087 that night.

"WHAT THE HELL SHIN?!" Daisuke yelled after catching his breath from screaming.

Shin was laughing his ass off in one of the corners, upside down of course.

"**Thought that awaking you that way would keep you on your toes later for our training." **Shin said, still with his mischievous grin.

"Yeah. Thanks Shin. Thanks a LOT." Daisuke said, getting up. Fastening his silver watch, he picked up his Substitute Soul Reaper badge. Soon enough, with flashing light, he was back in his Soul Reaper form.

_Oh how I missed being in this body.(?!)_

Unsheathing his sword, Shin asked, **"You ready to head out?"**

Grinning, Daisuke replied, "Let's go."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**C'mon! Aim lower!" **Shin yelled to Daisuke as he aimed his hand towards one of the reishi target boards Shin set up. The two were training in an abandoned warehouse not too far from the orphanage. Shinnosuke had set up a Kido barrier around the warehouse so that no one would know what was taking place inside the building. Shin was doing Jinzen while Daisuke practiced Kido spells. Surprisingly, Daisuke's ability in controlling and firing such spells seemed so natural. Already, Daisuke had mastered several Hado Spells (#1 Sho, #4 Byakurai, #31 Shakkaho, and #33 Sokatsui) and plenty of Bakudo Spells (#1 Sai, #4 Hainawa, #8 Seki, #61 Rikujokoro, and #81 Danku [He still needed work on #30 Shitotsu Sansen]) As of that point, Daisuke was practicing Soren Sokatsui, a far more powerful and advanced version of Sokatsui.

"Hado #73: Soren Sokatsui!" Daisuke chanted as he aimed his index and middle fingers towards the target. Two blue bursts of spiritual energy crashed out of his fingertips and made their way towards the target. There was a rather large explosion. As the smoke and light cleared, the target had been completely disintegrated.

"**Nice shot, Daisuke." **Shin cheered from his side of the building, still communicating with his Zanpaku-to.

Daisuke sat down to rest. For a first extensive training day, he had learned quite a load of spells that would actually take several years to master. He was truly learning quickly.

Earlier, he and Shin had been sparring. At first it had been with Zanpaku-to's (Daisuke lost the bout) then the two fought using hand-to-hand combat (Much to his glee, Daisuke beat the seasoned Soul Reaper in a fair tussle). **"There are four types of fighting. Zanjustsu; sword fighting and techniques. Hoho; fast, close-quarters combat that incorporates flash-stepping. Hakuda; standard hand-to-hand combat. Finally, Kido; Spells and enchantments that can be used in the heat of battle.**

Daisuke had proved himself to well-versed in all fields. Although he was an average 70 in offensive capabilities, he was 75 in defense, 90 in mobility,Kido/Reiatsu was 85, and his total physical strength was about 80. _Not bad. Not bad at all._

After resting for a while, Shin's Soul Pager began to ring.

"**Hollows. Northeast from here. Around the Seoul district." **Shin said, standing up, Zanpaku-to in hand. He then looked at Daisuke, who was preparing himself.

"**Think you can handle it?" **Shin asked him, grinning.

"Wait. By myself?" Daisuke asked, a bit surprised, some part of him told himself that he wasn't ready.

"**Yeah. It will be good training for you. Don't worry, I'll keep a fair distance away from you and I will come to your aid if the time comes."**

Daisuke thought about the plan for a moment. Then, unsheathing his sword, he looked at Shin.

"Alright. I'll go."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Hado #4: Byakurai!" Daisuke yelled as he discharged pale lightning at a nearby hollow. He then flash-stepped forward and stabbed another with his Zanpaku-to. He leapt up and brought down his sword on a fleeing hollow. Then blade connected with the head with a satisfying crack as the hollow was engulfed by thick ice. Soon, the hollow's body cracked apart. The hollows in the current area had all been sublimated. There was no more work left to do. However, Daisuke felt like patrolling around, searching for hollows and touring the city for a bit.

The city was truly a sight to behold. Skylights and brightly lit buildings were everywhere. Colorful banners and posters decorated a plentiful amount of structures. People were littered across the streets, swarming from one shop to another. Cars and buses continuously honked in the streets. He leapt across the skies. He felt as if he was flying… Just like the time he rode the swings… A single tear fell from his eye. He brushed it away quickly. Farther along the paved road, he saw someone he recognized walking home. The person was alone. Daisuke followed in pursuit, just for the hell of it. _I mean, why not?_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae was walking home after a dinner party with his friends at a nearby restaurant. The party was held because his friend's son had received an invitation to attend a private academy. _Youkai Academy was it? I don't even remember. _They ate loads of good quality food and they drank quite a lot too. Tae was one of the few who refused to drink.

He walked along the empty streets leading to his house. It had been a long day and he was going to enjoy sleeping. A phone call came from one of his friends and he continued talking till he reached the intersection. He put his phone away and he saw… _A boy?_

The boy was in dirty shorts and a sweater. He seemed to be caked in what seemed to be mud. The boy was crouching down and staring at a wall. _Strange. Not a time for children to be out this late… Hell, even I shouldn't be out this late._

Tae approached the boy. "Hey, kid? You should go home. It's late and it will be dangerous for you to be alone here."

The boy did not reply nor face him.

Tae, now pretty tired and a bit pissed off, talked to the boy one more time, "Kid. You should head home. Now. It's late."

The boy turned his head and faced Tae.

What he boy did next was absolutely horrifying. The boy changed his bodily form. He grew about five times larger and skin turned all white with strange red markings all over his skin. A horrid mask with long, serrated teeth covered the boy's mutilated face. Then, a hole appeared in his chest. It bared a similar resemblance to Daisuke's pictures with the beasts but this one was different_. It was… less hideous…_ Although hideous would be an understatement.

Tae was frozen in fear as the beast approached him. One step at a time.

Soon, Tae found enough strength to turn and run for his life. He ran as hard as he could to flee from this monstrosity. He looked back to see where the beast had gone but it wasn't there. It was airborne. Soon enough, it leapt onto Tae. Tae came crashing towards the ground, the beast on top of him. He felt excruciating pain from his chest. He began to lose sight as the beast's jaws moved toward his head. He closed his eyes as he thought that he was going to die that instant. However, the killing blow never came.

Tae opened his eyes briefly to see a young man with long, silver hair in a white kimono-like robe standing in front of him. The man had a strange sword in his hands as he blocked the teeth from sinking into Tae's neck. The young man turned around, Tae saw that the man had silver-blue eyes.

"D-Daisuke?..." he whispered before he passed out.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke intervened just in time. He stuck his sword right into the behemoth's mouth, preventing it from chomping down on Tae's head. With a forceful kick, he landed it on the hollow's face, knocking it back several feet. Firmly gripping his sword, he charged at the hollow. The hollow anticipated this move and swiftly moved to the right to dodge it, but he wasn't swift enough.

Daisuke forgot a major rule when it came to sublimating hollows.

"_**Strike from the back of the head."**_

Daisuke instead mis-swung and broke off a portion of the hollow's mask. His wristwatch began to vibrate violently.

Daisuke stared in horror. The hollow brought its hands to its face and fled through a gray portal with an ear-deafening scream.

But this wasn't what horrified Daisuke.

What horrified him… was that this hollow…

Was Sang-Hyun.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**(A/N): YES! FINISHED THE CHAPTER! I HOPE YOU GUYS ENJOYED IT! The next chapter shall be posted as soon as I finish it. Thank you for reading. Reviews are appreciated. Until next time…**

**~SAYONARA~**


	8. Chapter 8: Only Time will Tell

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: Well. Here's another late chapter. I apologize for its lateness. My grandfather had passed away and it was very difficult time for me to pull through. But, I am over it now, so no worries. The chapters will continue. Reviews are appreciated. And, as always, please, enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae woke up in a white room. Checking by his surroundings, he found himself in a hospital room, lying in a clean, soft bed. In that instant, he forgot how he got there in the first place. Then, he felt an aching pain in his chest. He looked at the source of all the pain and saw that it was covered up in bandages. He laid back down onto his pillow and tried to recall what had happened. He couldn't.

Soon, a young nurse came in and checked up on Tae. Although he was severely injured from an injury he doesn't recall, he was making a steady recovery from it. Tae asked the nurse how he ended up in the hospital in the first place.

"A young boy brought you in. He had a peculiar appearance." The nurse replied, setting Tae's medications by the night table.

Tae though for a moment. _Young boy… Peculiar appearance… Doesn't ring a bell…_

"The boy had long silver hair and rather strange eyes…" The nurse continued.

_Silver hair…? Strange eyes? _"Can you elaborate please?" Tae asked.

The nurse looked at Tae, eyebrow raised. "His eyes were silver-ish blue. From first glance, they looked as if they didn't have any pupils. He wore simple clothing and had a very melancholy voice. I assumed you knew this boy. Do you?"

_**DAISUKE. **__Impossible. Admin Jean said that Daisuke was not permitted outside… I don't understand… _"Yes I do know that boy. Did he say anything?" Tae said as he reached for his medicine.

Picking up her tray, the nurse said, "He wasn't much of a talker. But he did say…"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**Many hours earlier…**_

Daisuke leapt across the city with Tae on his back. He was unconscious but still alive. At least for the moment. Tae had begun coughing up blood mid-jump and Daisuke was alarmed by the forming of sudden events.

_Tae was attacked by Sang-Hyun… No… it can't be… Can it?... He received punishing wounds from… Anyway, his condition is getting worse… Is there a nearby first-aid kit box?... Regardless, I wouldn't know how to use one… _Tae had begun coagulating even more blood. _Damn. This isn't good… What the hell do I do?_

Daisuke landed on the ground. He set Tae against the wall of a building. Tae's breathing was becoming severely labored. Daisuke didn't know what to do. Tae was dying and he didn't know where to take him. As he brought his hands to his face, it had begun to rain…

_Rain… Oh the reminiscence… Oh the irony…_

"**Hey idiot." **A voice came out of nowhere. Daisuke, startled by the broken silence, swerved to the direction of the voice.

It was Shin.

Shin was holding several things. He had Daisuke's soul-less shell of a body and his Substitute Soul Reaper Pass.

"Oh Shin! I'm so glad to se-" Daisuke was cut off as he got punched in the face. Hard.

"**You idiot! You know how much I was worried?! I told you keep in the certain distance so that I could keep watch! But did you listen? Nooo! You went off to explore the city for your own personal reasons! Why do you think we Shingamis exist? To tour the cities? I shit you not! We are here in this world to protect humans from hollows!" **Shin exclaimed.

"I was in fact doing my job." Daisuke snapped, pointing at Tae and rubbing his face, _That is going to leave a bruise… _"Isn't that why you brought my things?"

"**NO… and yes…" **Shin stammered, cursing himself silently. He set Daisuke's possessions next to Tae.

Shin was silent for a several minutes, panning his eyes from Daisuke's equipment to Tae, then to Daisuke. **"What the hell happened?" **Shin finally asked, face no longer showing anger but genuine concern.

"Long story…" Daisuke said as he began to tell Shin all of the things that occurred in the past couple hours.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke entered his physical body as Shin handed him his Substitute Badge. They both looked at Tae who was definitely not going to survive without medical attention.

"What should I do?" Daisuke asked, voice slightly faltering.

Shin looked around their surroundings. **"Well, hell, we aren't going to get help around here…" **

"Oh c'mon Shin. Don't be such a smartass. Just think." Daisuke said, voice pitch raising higher with each word.

Shin was quiet and had his eyes closed as he was thinking. _**Where do humans take their sick and wounded… A medical bay? No… Humans don't possess such things… Wait! Humans actually do have such a thing! A… hospit…a hospital was it? I think so.**_

"**Daisuke," **Shin said, setting his hand on his shoulder. Daisuke looked up, eyes wide. **"Don't you humans have something called a hospital?"**

Daisuke recalled hearing the word before, but that was nearly ten years ago. He tried to remember what the word was. He couldn't.

"Sorry Shin. I'm still new to the world outside. I don't know."

Shin paced steadily back and forth in the alleyway, arms behind his back, staring hard at the ground. Then, he leapt up onto a nearby building roof, out of Daisuke's line of sight. Daisuke waited silently, checking up on Tae. _He stopped coughing… His shirt is bloody… What the hell…_

The Shinigami landed abruptly on the ground in front of Daisuke, almost startling him.

"**There is hospital nearby our area that is not too far. We can make it." **Shin said, eagerness in his voice.

"Alright, let's go." Daisuke said, heaving Tae over his shoulders as he got up.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The two approached the hospital. Shin wasn't visible to passerby-ers but Daisuke sure as hell was. A strange looking boy with a heavily bleeding man on his back is sure to attract nearly unwanted attention, even late at night.

Daisuke made it into the white building. It was quite an astounding sight as well as an establishment. _Seoul University Hospital, huh? All too new… _Inside, Daisuke was approached by a herd of doctors and nurses who literally tore Tae off his back and onto a medical bed as they rushed him into the emergency room. Only a young nurse remained in the receptionist area with Daisuke. She had light brown hair and soft brown eyes. From first glance, she was quite pretty.

"Wha-what happened?" the nurse asked, almost at a loss of words due to being taken aback by the turn of events. It was her second night on the job.

Daisuke was silent. He stared blankly in the direction where Tae was taken, at a loss of words.

The nurse observed Daisuke. _What a strange boy… Silver hair, pale skin… those eyes… He's actually… somewhat handsome… _She slowly approached Daisuke and spoke to him softly, "What happened?"

Turning away from the corridor, Daisuke looked at her, straight in the eyes. He then spoke, voice full of concern, "Please. Take care of this man." With that, he left as he came. In complete silence.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**Present Time…**_

The nurse had just left the room as Tae took his medicine. He then settled back down onto his pillow. He closed his eyes. He wanted to know what happened many hours ago. He thought hard, ever so thinking desperately. Still, he couldn't. Slowly, he drifted to sleep.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Tae was frozen in fear as the beast approached him. One step at a time._

_Soon, Tae found enough strength to turn and run for his life. He ran as hard as he could to flee from this monstrosity. He looked back to see where the beast had gone but it wasn't there. It was airborne. Soon enough, it leapt onto Tae. Tae came crashing towards the ground, the beast on top of him. He felt excruciating pain from his chest. He began to lose sight as the beast's jaws moved toward his head. He closed his eyes as he thought that he was going to die that instant. _

_However, the killing blow never came._

_Tae opened his eyes slowly to briefly see a young man with long, silver hair in a white kimono-like robe standing in front of him. The man had a strange sword in his hands as he blocked the teeth from sinking into Tae's neck. Instead, the boy had been bitten on the arm, and was bleeding. He turned around; Tae saw that the boy had silver-blue eyes._

"_D-Daisuke?..." he whispered before he passed out._

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae awoke abruptly from the dream. _Was it a dream? Or was it a memory? I don't get it…_

It was apparently nighttime and the room was dark. _The nurse must have turned off the lights as I went to sleep… Huh, nice of her…_

Tae prepared to close his eyes and go back to sleep until something caught his eye.

There was someone else in the room with him.

Tae looked at the lone figure in white. Then he noticed another that wore black and had blended into the darkness.

"Wha-what do you want from me?" Tae asked, voice shaking. Tae clenched his fists underneath the covers of the bed.

The person in white stepped forward. Light from outside the window revealed only partial details of his face, but partial was enough.

_Long, silver hair… pale skin… Blue eyes…? Daisuke?_

"I see you are awake Tae. That's good to see. Are you feeling any better?" Daisuke asked.

Tae was silent. He didn't understand what was going on. _Daisuke roaming around outside? Since when? _"I'm feeling fine…"

"Oh? So you can see me?" Daisuke asked, walking towards the window.

"What do you mean?" Tae asked, eyebrow raised.

"I'll tell you later." Daisuke replied, much to Tae's disappointment.

Then, Tae finally found the question he wanted the answer to so earnestly.

"Daisuke?"

"Hmm?" He replied, slowly looking out the window to city world beyond.

"How did I get here?" Tae asked, eager for an answer.

Daisuke looked away from the window and slowly retreated into the shadows of the room and sat down.

"Where to start…"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"So you are telling me that you are Shinigami? A death god?" _Where did I see this word before?_

"Quite precisely. Thanks to my friend right here, Shin, without my consent." Daisuke said, elbowing Shin in the ribs. Shin let out a slight grunt, surprised by the sudden elbow.

"So… earlier you asked if I could see you… what did you mean by that?" Tae asked, curiously.

Daisuke nudged Shin. Shin cleared his throat and said, **"What he meant by that is that we, as Shinigami, aren't visible to just ordinary people. Only a select few that have enough Spirit Energy can see us."**

"Spirit energy?" Tae asked.

_**This conversation seems REALLY familiar… **_**"Alright, let me explain…"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Several blocks away from the hospital room, a black uniformed man stood perched onto a power line pole, earpiece equipped.

"_Do you see him?" A voice from the piece asked._

"Yes sir. Positive visual on target."

"_Good. Be prepared to deliver the package once the others leave. Understand?"_

"Yes sir. Understood."

"_Also…"_

"What is it, sir?"

"Don't kill Tae. That would be unnecessary."

"Copy."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**That hollow came and attacked you. It must've tried to devour you because of your Spirit Energy."**

Tae thought for a moment, "Seems legitimate enough."

Daisuke was silent as he reminisced about the hollow…. _Sang Hyun…_

"**We'll stay posted outside of the hospital in our spirit forms and fend off the other hollows that may come this way. So rest easy."**

"Thank you, that would be appreciated… But, Daisuke? What about Admin Jean? Does he know…?"

Daisuke quickly looked at Tae. "Don't worry. I've got it under control."

"Alright then…"

"**We'll be outside" **Shin said, making his way out of the window.

Daisuke, too, climbed out the window after giving a curt good-bye to Tae.

Tae laid back down onto his bed, sighing. _In the end, Daisuke isn't insane after all… I'm such an idiot… _With that, he, once again, fell asleep, this time dreamlessly.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The two Soul Reapers sat suspended in midair. They sat in silence, on lookout for stray hollows that may come their way to harm either them or Tae. Shin put his hand on his Zanpaku-to and looked at Daisuke.

"**Daisuke?"**

"What?"

Shin brushed and combed back his long black hair with his hand. **"When you were mentioning the hollow that attacked Tae to me earlier, something about it made you hesitant. Is something wrong?"**

Daisuke, looking up to dark night sky, sighing, said, "I didn't try sublimating the correct way like you told me to."

Raising an eyebrow, Shin asked, **"What do you mean?"**

Daisuke stared off into the distance, thinking about the hollow. "I broke a portion of his mask off."

Shin, eyes wide, said, **"Him? What are you talking about?"**

Daisuke looked at Shin straight in the eye, it slightly unnerved him. With a deep breath, Daisuke said "I knew who the hollow was… It was a friend of mine."

Shin just stared blankly at Daisuke, not saying a word.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

While the two were conversing, they were too busy to notice a black clad figure rushing towards Tae's room. Shin though, thought he felt a disturbance in the spiritual atmosphere. He looked briefly at Tae's room. He saw nothing. So, in the end, he brushed the event off as if it was nothing.

The figure made it into Tae's room without a sound. The man was holding a parcel. He quickly put the parcel on the night table by Tae as quiet as he could.

Tae, oblivious of what was going on, woke up.

The black-suited man quickly covered Tae's mouth before he could make a sound. He also held a strange blade in front of Tae's throat.

"You scream, I will kill you. You make a sound, I will kill you."

Tae had no choice but to oblige.

The man said, "Our leader told me to drop off this package for you. Your hands only. He said… that it was his gift to you and it had served him well in time's need." With that, the man was gone in a matter of seconds.

Tae looked at the box. He reached for it. Setting it on his lap, he opened. What the contents were more or less shocked him.

It was a silver wristwatch.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The hollow that fled into the gray portal whimpered as its mask regenerated. It was not that it felt pain; it felt great sadness for a strange reason. It slowly regained bits and pieces memory of whom it was, before reanimation as a hollow.

But bits and pieces aren't enough.

Not enough to regain its humanity.

With a terrifying roar, the mask had fully regenerated and it was up to full strength. He had begun to lose some of its recently acquired memories as it was consumed with a inapprehensible feeling. It felt something. Something that belonged to him was somewhere. Somewhere out there.

_What was it… It was silver… metal… small…_

The hollow then remembered its name and its stolen possession.

Opening the portal, it made it back into the world of the living. Breathing slowly, it uncurled its long white fingers, revealing sharp talon-like claws.

Someone stole his wristwatch. Someone killed him. He was back to repay a visit to whoever had it.

_My name is Sang Hyun. And I want my wristwatch back…_

Revealing it teeth, and turning it into a wicked smile, he had begun his spree.

He will get back his watch.

And kill everyone in his way.

No matter what it takes.

**(A/N): I'm done. Sorry for this chapter. I'm suffering a bit from depression as before but I have this story laid out and I know where to take it. Thank you for reading. Reviews are appreciated.**

**Until next time,**

**~SAYONARA~**


	9. Chapter 9: Time has Foretold

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: Yeah… I'm pushing out for another chapter… I think I kind of rushed it… It has been hard… Thankfully, I'm pulling through. It's all thanks to you guys, the readers. Without your support, I'd have stopped this FanFic. Thanks again. Anyway, as always, reviews are appreciated and please, enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The Hollow raced across the city of Inchon. He was making its way to Seoul at his full speed. There was only one thing that he had on his mind. Because of that one thing, he pressed on in his crusade to retrieve what was lost to him.

_WRISTWATCH_

He leapt from on building to another, oblivious to the havoc he was causing in the eyes of humans who couldn't see him. Pots were smashed. Windows shattered. Several rooftops had craters from his jumping. But he didn't care. He wanted his possession back.

_WRISTWATCH_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A man with black hair cloaked in white watched from a distance not too far, hands in his side pockets, nonchalantly, in the sky. He too, had a Zanpaku-to, but it wasn't a Soul Reapers. He wore garb that had cut sleeves and opened chest. Revealing a hole and a number imprinted in black. The man smirked as the Hollow caught his sight. The Hollow lunged straight at him, claws dangerously close but the man disappeared in a flash-step like movement, much to his confusion. Then, once again, he continued onward.

The man reappeared once the Hollow left. All he did was devilishly grin. _Feisty one, ain't he?_

"Everything is going accordingly to plan… Brother…" he said. "The gift I have sent you… shall be your last…" With that, he laughed.

"I don't think so." Said a voice, startling the man. He quickly turned his head to the source of the voice, pulling out his sword. He saw a hooded man standing near him, staring in the direction the Hollow went off in.

Gripping his sword tightly with one hand, he pointed it at the man, "What makes you say that?!"

The hooded man stood unfazed and unflinching at the other's brash response. He chuckled silently, but loud enough for the man to hear him, aggravating him further.

"You'll see." The hooded man said.

The man swung his sword at him, but all he hit was the air. The hooded man was gone.

_Dammit…_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Admin Jean sat at his desk, flipping through several files. He had taken out specific files from his cache. A couple of them included a Soul Reaper, a peculiar student, and an orphaned boy. There was a knock at his door.

"Come in." He said, eyes glued to his files, still flipping through them.

The hooded man entered, standing in front of Jean's desk.

Still looking at the files, Jean said, "What is it that you need, Headmaster?"

The Headmaster, grinning slightly said, "I request that you remove Patient #1087 from confinement."

Jean finally looked up and stared hard into the Headmaster's glowing eyes. "Why, may I ask, do you wish so?"

The Headmaster paced several steps in front of the desks. "The patient's tests have been proven… fruitful… I believe it is time…"

Jean panned his eyes away from the man and back onto his files. "No. Not yet."

The man's grin had vanished as he put his hands down on Jean's desk. "You know what will happen if you don't soon." The Headmaster saw the files laid on the table. They had several pictures, including one for an orange-haired boy; eyebrows knit together, another boy, with brown hair and apparently a student, and finally, the patient himself.

"Yes. I do know what will happen. But it is too soon. He needs more time." Jean said, looking away from his files.

The Headmaster listened and nodded. He then observed the files laid on the table more intently.

"Are these the chosen candidates for this year's first class?" he asked, eyes on their information.

Jean leaned back into his chair, "They seem to be the best group of them in the last several years. With what's going on in the Soul Society and the World of Monsters, they seem to be the last chance we got."

The Headmaster closed his glowing eyes and stood quietly. "Our last chance…"

"That's right." Jean said, a tone of graveness in his voice. "Did you get any recent information regarding the Soul Society though? I heard there was some serious… business going on…"

"Nothing. I haven't had Hell Butterfly in weeks."

Jean brushed his hair with his open hand. "Remember the commotion from 101 years ago? I believe it's Aizen again."

The Headmaster opened his eyes and raised an eyebrow. "Sosuke? What is it now this time?"

"As I want to mention before, I don't have any valuable information other than regarding that there has been an intrusion in the Seireitei. That information is regarding the orange-haired boy. Other than him, you know the rest."

"Yes. I have delivered the invitation to the Aono Household already."

Jean closed his eyes this time and sat still, leaning further back into his chair. "The plan is almost complete… All we need now is Daisu- I mean, Patient 1087 to master his… abilities before entering the field."

The Headmaster looked Jean, slightly grinning, "Don't worry about him mastering, this year's school list, I've made sure that there was someone specially invited who can help him learn his true abilities and his… heritage… With that, he will be fine and ready to face whatever comes in his way… Hopefully…" Then, he smiled briefly "Reminds you of old times doesn't it? Saving the world? Sound familiar?"

Jean chuckled, "With Isshin and Kisuke? Yes… it does. Well, we were younger back then…"

"Don't forget Ryuken and Yoruichi." The Headmaster added.

"Oh yes… The smart-ass and the 'Master of Shunpo'… Wonder how they are keeping up…" Jean said, pulling out an old photograph, both him and the Headmaster smiled at the air of nostalgia. On the photo were six people; five of them wore varying Shihakushos and one wore a rather complex and ridiculous white outfit and had a dangling pendant on his right hand.

_Only 100 years ago… Damn, how fast time flies…_

"Anyway, back to business." The Headmaster said. "You must release Patient #1087 before the end of the following week. Regarding the World of Monsters, they'll be headed your way soon. I've received word that a man named Hyun-Joon has joined their ranks… But the strange thing is that rumors have it that he…"

"What about him?"

"That he is an Arrancar… A powerful one at that too… And I believe that is true for I think I met him before I came here."

Jean, tucking the photo away, sighed, "I see. Alright, I'll make sure to take note of that... Oh, and I'll make sure for the final preparations for the Patient."

The Headmaster stood up and made his way toward the door, "I'll make sure the letter arrives soon. And regards to your… employee…"

Jean raised an eyebrow, "Tae?"

Nodding, the man said, "Yes, him."

"He'll prove to be worthy asset and maybe even an ally in the near future. Given time of course."

"That's good." He replied, showing his approval. "You know you are going to have to fire him soon for that and his sake."

Jean looked around his office, "Yes. I am well aware of that."

"Alright then." He said, opening the door. "Jean?"

"Hmm?"

"Let's hope that we finally succeed. We already lost too many valuable allies in our crusade to prevent yet another war."

Jean nodded, "Yes. But let's not hope. It WILL happen. I promise you."

"Alright." With those final words, he vanished.

Jean closed the door and took a jacket off of his coat rack and put it on. He straighten himself out as he made his way out of his office and down into the hallway. He climbed down several flights of stairs and thought to himself momentarily, _Huh, I always wondered why it took Tae so long to get to my office… Guess I should've put in an elevator… Oh well… It is going to be too late for that anyway… _He was on his way to see a sight. Something in particular with a silver-haired boy.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The front desk receptionist was marking several things on her clipboard as she saw that the Administrator was walking towards the exit door. She quickly put down her board gave a curt greeting to him.

"Are you going somewhere sir?" She asked.

Jean looked at his watch and replied, "Yeah… I need to be somewhere right now…"

The receptionist looked puzzled, she'd been here for nearly a decade and she knew that the Administrator would leave at strange notices. "Excuse me, but may I ask where?"

He looked up at her, "That would be irrelevant, Mrs. Tanaka."

She was disappointed, but she had a job to do. "Sorry sir. Hope you make it there safely."

Jean smirked, "No worries. It's all under control." With that, he stepped outside the automatic doors and disappeared into the distance.

_Have it under control? What does he mean?, _she thought before tending back to her work.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"… That's what I'm telling you. He was a spirit I befriended." Daisuke finished saying.

Shin was laying down, upside down of course, on the sky, as he listened to Daisuke.

"**So… to wrap all your words up, I believe a Hollow got to him and turned him into one of them."** Shin said coolly, unflinching as Daisuke threw a stray brick at him. **"Missed." **He said, grinning.

"You and your way with words, you know that?" Daisuke said, angrily

Shin laughed. **"Hey. It's the truth." **Then, his facial expression changed immediately,** "You know it too…"**

The atmosphere changed from laughter to aura of tension and seriousness. Then silence. The two sat in midair, in uncomfortable silence, looking at the city down below. All of a sudden, a black butterfly with a red abdomen appeared before them. Shin sprang up, startling Daisuke.

"What is that Shin?" Daisuke asked, remembering them from the Konsos that occurred many days ago in his room.

"**It's a Hell Butterfly… Messengers of the Soul Society… I wonder what's going on…" **Shin said, reached out for the creature.

"Hello Shin." A voice said. _It must have come from the butterfly._

"**Captain Ichimaru!" **Shin said aloud. _Captain who? _

"I, Captain Gin Ichimaru of Third Company, am requesting your return back to the Soul Society immediately. Come back in earnest. There is some… Urgent business that we must handle." Shin just stared blankly in shock and confusion. _**What the hell is going on?! **_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A gate appeared before the two. As it opened, the Hell Butterfly flew into the light. Shin looked at Daisuke.

"**Guess this is good-bye. For now."**

"Yeah… You go on, Shin. I'll be here, in Seoul, the next time you can come again. I promise you."

Grinning his signature grin, Shin said, **"Better be you jack-ass. I promise you too. I'll be back one day… I don't know when… But it's a promise…" **Shin held out his hand.

Daisuke clasped it with his own; the two Soul Reapers looked at each other, eyes subsequently filled with sorrow of good-bye. Daisuke let go of the hand and said, "Best be off Shin. Don't want to disappoint your Captain now would we?" He grinned.

"**Oh shut up…" **He snapped. Taking a step into the gate, he looked back. **"Until next time, Daisuke. Good-bye." **He said as the gate closed.

_Good-bye friend and fellow Shinigami. _Daisuke thought to himself, a single tear running down his left cheek. Then, the gate disappeared.

"I'm alone again."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The Hollow felt the presence of his possession nearby.

_WHERE? WHERE IS IT?_

He felt the presence radiate in the distance. He looked in that direction and saw the hospital.

_YES. IT IS THERE! MY WATCH IS THERE!_

With insane glee, he leapt across the city with his full speed. Finally, he was going to get his watch back. And nobody was going to stop him.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke sat glumly in the air. Alone. There were no spirits around either. He pulled his Zanpaku-to out of his sheath. It was now, a regular katana. It wasn't released in its Shikai form anymore. Planting the sword in front of him, he began to do Jinzen.

_Tōketsu sh__ir__a yuki__… Speak to me…_

_**What is it that you want?**_

_Allow me to release your first form. Let me master my Shikai._

_**As you wish… But not immediately…**_

_Why not?_

_**Patience… Do you feel it?**_

_Feel what?_

_**The presence…**_

_What presen-_

He felt the immense spiritual pressure. But it was vaguely familiar.

_**Do you recognize it? This pressure?... From a Hollow?**_

_I… I think it's…_

_**SANG HYUN **_they both said in unison. Daisuke leapt to his feet. _Where is he? DAMMIT! I can't pinpoint his location!_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae sat in his bed as he and nurse were having a conversation. For some reason, he felt attracted to her.

"You're new here, huh? What's your name?" Tae asked.

" My name is Minami, Minami Nakamura. And yeah… Third day on the job." She said, with a little smile.

"Phew… Tough work?"

"Sometimes… Especially when you are taking care of a man who doesn't even recall the injury he sustained just recently."

They both laughed. Tae couldn't help but smile. _This girl… I think… I think that I-_

Then, he suddenly felt like he was being pushed heavily down.

"What's wrong? Minami asked. "Are you alright?"

Tae breathed heavily, back hunched over as he slowly stood up, "I'm… I'm fine." He began to sweat. He then looked out the window. His face showed nothing but horror.

It was the Hollow. And it was lunging towards them.

"Oh SHIT!" Tae yelled. "Hurry! OUT THE DOOR!" He yelled at the very confused nurse. Tae looked back, _It going to hit us… We're not going to make it… Shit!_

With his remaining strength, he jumped onto Minami much to her surprise, to shield her.

There was a loud crash in the room.

When the dust had cleared, Tae opened his eyes and saw that he and Minami were still alive, but the room was in shambles. Then he saw a man that stood before him. He apparently shielded the two of them from the impact of the Hollow.

"Nice move there hot-shot."

Much to Tae's surprise, the man was smiling, but that wasn't the reason why.

It was Admin Jean.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**(A/N): Yep. Done. Just a note, this story, obviously is coming to a close. Don't worry folks, I'm feeling a lot better. This story is heading towards the finale, then, a new story will begin. But before that, there will still be two more backstories I need to add after finishing this one. These two including your favorites… Their identity will be revealed... But it already has been! READ THE CHAPTER OVER AGAIN! IT'S IN HERE! But, as always, reviews are appreciated. Until next time,**

**~SAYONARA~**


	10. Chapter 10: Time Passes

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: Yes. Another chapter finally. Being sick and all, I feel like that this is a major accomplishment, heh. Anyway, reviews are appreciated. And as always, please, enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke heard the thunderous crash from the distance. He looked to see from where the blast had come from and was in horror to discover that it was Tae's room. _Oh no…_

"DAMMIT!" Daisuke cried out loud as he rushed towards all the rubble and destruction. There was a small crowd of people gathering several stories below the window, everyone wondering what in the world was going on. Of course, regular humans couldn't see hollows attacking sick people but, who knows.

_This is bad… That Hollow has come back, spiritual energy stronger than ever… Tae… Shit…. I'm sorry…_

With that last thought, Daisuke unsheathed his sword, approaching the room as the smoke and dust cleared.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The Hollow knew he had hit something worth hitting when his fist had impacted through the wall. Through the whirling dust, he saw something glistening amidst it. Upon first glance, he knew what it was. Smiling to himself, he mouthed, _**WRISTWATCH.**_

The Hollow waited for all the dust to clear; however, there was something strange. Whatever he had hit hadn't seemed to have been moved or destroyed, at all actually. Then, as soon as the dust cleared, he saw him. A man, with great spiritual energy, had clutched him by the fist with his bare hands.

_**A MERE HUMAN!? HOW?!**_

The man smirked upon eye contact with the Hollow and began to speak.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Nice move there hot-shot."

Tae was surprised, although the man was smiling, the reason wasn't that.

It was Admin Jean.

"What the-? Sir?!" Tae said eyes wider than before.

"Surprised?" Jean said with his signature smirk as he held the Hollow's devastating blow, unfazed, in one hand.

Tae was at a complete loss of words as the Hollow struggled to free itself from Jean's grasp, clearly unable to do so. In a flash, Jean spun and punched the Hollow squarely in the middle of its mask, sending it flying across the streets… Right into an unsuspecting Daisuke.

"What is th-"

In an almost comic-like fashion, the two were flung far down, several blocks away from the hospital, tumbling over signs and benches, creating havoc for many unlucky bystanders. Daisuke stood up quickly, brushing of all the dust off his white Shihakusho. He gripped his sword ever so tightly, still surrounded by a cloud of dust, _Strange… The dust should have cleared by now… But it hasn't… What the hell?_

Then, nearly at the speed of light, a figure charged out of the dust cutting deeply into Daisuke's shoulder, covering the sidewalk with a fine reddish liquid; His blood splattered on the ground, his left shoulder bleeding pretty badly. Daisuke fell to his knees, nearly collapsing.

_Shit… _He thought to himself as he struggled to keep himself from losing balance.

_**Daisuke… **_His Zanpaku-to spoke out to him.

_What is it Toketsu?_

_**Observe your opponent's fighting patterns.**_

_What pattern? I don't see any such thing._

_**Not yet. Look closer. The Hollow charged from your right and slashed your left shoulder and fled to the left backside…**_

_I see… _Daisuke replied to his Zanpaku-to, drops of sweat appearing over his forehead as he regained balance, ignoring most of his recently acquired pain.

The cloud of dust continued to whirl around him as Daisuke blinked at each passing second. Time mattered. Now, it was a fight for either life or death. _This Hollow attack and speed prowess vastly improved from our last encounter. Although I can withstand its first blow, I doubt I can endure the next one. This isn't good… _Daisuke held the hilt of his sword ever so tightly as blood trickled down his left arm.

There was a sudden irregularity in the dust pattern. The dust from one side moved towards the opposite way of the flow.

_**There. That is where he is going to strike from next.**_

_Gotcha. _

There was the same figure wheeling forward at him, but Daisuke saw it this time. With elegance, he swung at the behemoth; cutting him as the blood sprinkled the air in a fine red mist. _Got you._

The Hollow howled in agony, gripping its wounded area. The dust had finally begun to clear, no longer providing the Hollow a sneak attack position. Daisuke held his ground, standing firm, Toketsu in his hand. He looked at the beast straight in the eye as the Hollow raised his head to see him as well. But instead, he saw something shining and covered in blood.

**WRISTWATCH**

The spiritual pressure around the two rose to terrifying levels. Windows shattered, ground cratered, even the people around them were affected by it; most of them collapsed to the ground while some withstood the intense pressure.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Admin Jean watched from above, standing on the edge of a building, hand in pocket, lighting himself a cigar. After inhaling, he blew out a dark, grey smoke. He observed the intense fight ensuing below. All he did was smile.

"He sure has grown a lot… hasn't he?" a voice rang out.

Jean, startled, looked to his side to see a man garbed in a black Shihakusho and a white Haori, hands in pocket, also smiling a rather unnerving smile. The man had snow, white hair and his eyes seemed nearly closed, opened in slits. He also was armed with a Zanpaku-to, although sheathed, that seemed the size and appearance of a standard Wakizashi, a size seemingly too small for a Zanpaku-to. He had a thin appearance but his Reiatsu was monstrous.

"Who the hell are…?" Jean began to speak, as the man turned his face towards him.

"I assumed you'd know by now who I am… Guess not…" the man said, smile slightly faltering. "That boy..." The man began to say, smiling his strange smile once again at full, this time, eyes opened, revealing shining blue eyes.

"Is of my blood…"

"Wait… What?!" Jean exclaimed, nearly falling out of the sky, catching himself midair, dropping his cigar.

The man looked blankly into the sky, then at Jean, finally, to Daisuke.

"I'll be back… for you… one day… Daisuke…" The man said, walking away from the site.

Jean could only stare as the man flash-stepped away at a moment's notice.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke blocked the tremendous force behind the Hollow's claw attack with his Zanpaku-to. His muscles were now screaming in pain because of the continuous chain of blocks he had to do in order to fend off the Hollows incoming attacks; Now, he had begun to reach his limit by the continuous strain on his body.

_This isn't good… Not good at all… _

Daisuke took a moment to take a quick observance of his newly strengthened opponent. _The Hollow no longer hides and uses sneak attacks. Now, it just plainly uses brute force with his claws. It's as if he was empowered by some strange force… What would that be?_

The Hollow started to slash down with his right claw. Daisuke immediately saw this and sidestepped it and dashed under the reach of the beast and slashed upward with his sword. There was definite contact but there was no feeling of cutting behind the blade. Daisuke found out that his hands had begun to bleed.

_What?! How?!_

During his little revelation, the Hollow took this to his advantage. He struck Daisuke in the chest with such momentum it sent Daisuke flying through several shopping stands set up on the streets of Seoul. Daisuke landed on several packages of rice, cushioning his landing but not from any of the pain of crashing through hard wood and some concrete.

Slowly and weakly, Daisuke got up, wiping blood away from his mouth. He gripped his Zanpaku-to as hard as he could in his bloodied hands. He stepped out of the ruined stand unsteadily and faced the approaching Hollow, half-conscious with himself. He swung his fist at Daisuke who was too fatigued to react. As Daisuke was blown back once more, something tightly clasped onto his wrist came loose. The silver object flew off and tumbled onto the crushed pavement. It rested on top of the ruined street.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**WRISTWATCH **_

The Hollow quickly bent over and picked up his long-lost possession, grasping it tightly across his chest. However, in a battle, one must not take his eyes off an opponent no matter what. In a flash, a snow white blade cut in front of the Hollow's mask, immediately slicing off the top half of the mask. Blood gushed out of the Hollow's face as his identity was revealed once more. Screaming, it tried to cover its face but to no avail.

Daisuke, solemnly looking at the Hollow, was quiet. It was Sang Hyun. However, the Sang Hyun that he knew wasn't here anymore. This… beast had stolen him for Daisuke. The real Sang Hyun was gone. Daisuke knew what he had to do. He had to finish this.

For himself.

For Sang Hyun.

He gripped his sword with both hands, despite his physical state, he raised his Zanpaku-to and spoke out, "Toketsu… Toketsu no Shirayuki… Grant me… Grant me your power… Let me master… Shikai."

"**As you wish… Daisuke…." **A chilling voice rang out. Snow and frost began to whirl around the boy and his sword. He had closed his eyes as the wind blew back and forth with ice on its fingertips. Daisuke opened his eyes, gleaming with a shining blue, and chanted, "Rule over the world covered in frost… Toketsu no Shirayuki."

There was an explosion of cold and frost around the area.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The icy mist swayed away, revealing a cloaked Daisuke, with the intricately fashioned Zanpaku-to that he first awakened with. All of his wounds had been sealed with the ice, stopping the bleeding, instantly healing him in the process, therefore, renewing his strength back to the maximum.

Cracking his shoulders, he said, "Let's start again… Shall we?"

He dashed towards the Hollow with astounding speed. Swiftly, he swung his sword at the distracted Hollow. With a clean motion, he landed a great cut down the chest of the beast, bringing him to his knees. Blood burst out the abdomen, flooding the street, yet it didn't kill the Hollow. He continuously reached for the fallen wristwatch lying mere centimeters away. Daisuke brought the tip of his sword down onto the Hollow's hand, nailing it to the ground. He then pointed his index finger at his bleeding face, preparing a Hado spell.

"DO IT! PLEASE!" a voice shouted. Daisuke looked all around to see where the voice came from. It was no other than the Hollow himself. "KILL ME! KILL ME!" He screamed.

"Sang Hyun…" Daisuke said softly.

"DO IT! DO IT! PLEASE! KILL ME!" The Hollow continuously exclaimed, Daisuke only stared, finger still pointed, shaking.

"DAISUKE! YOU MUST! DO IT!"

Then, he came to his senses.

Pointing his finger with more firmness, Daisuke soundly chanted, "Hado #4, Byakurai."

From the tip of his finger, a bluish-white lightning crashed out through, clearing everything in its path, including the Hollow.

Daisuke fell to his knees, shaking slightly, staring into the distance.

_I'm sorry Sang Hyun._

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke got up and pulled his sword of where the Hollow hand was, it too, disintegrating along with the rest of the Hollow. He went to where the wristwatch was. He picked it up, looking at fondly for one last time. Then, slowly, it began to fade away, like dust in the wind. He tried to grasp onto it but it wouldn't stay. Soon, it was gone. Daisuke stared, eyes wide, unbelievingly, into his empty hand. He bent one knee down, hand over his face. Shaking.

However, Daisuke lifted his head instantaneously when he thought he had heard a voice. He listened hard and keenly. There was definitely a voice somewhere here.

"_Thank you… Thank you Daisuke…"_

He recognized the voice. He slowly got up and sheathed his Zanpaku-to. He brushed his hair away and there, a single tear, glistening in the sunlight, rolled down his cheek. He let it drop to the ground.

With that he walked back to the hospital. He had to know whether Tae was alright or not.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Adminstr- I mean Jean, just what the hell is going on? With EVERYTHING!" Tae exclaimed, almost yelling. He had been moved to a new room after everything had somewhat cleared back at the hospital. Jean and Minami were with him in the room.

"Sigh. You see, the Orphanage… isn't just an Orphanage…" Jean said.

"Well. No shit there sir."

"And it's NOT a mental institute."

"… okay?"

Staring out the windows, Jean drew a deep breath, "You may think of what I am saying as foolish and hard to understand… but the Orphanage… is a place where we recruit people… people with worthy talents… to save the world from turmoil… We've already seen so much of it…"

Tae was still for a moment. "From what I've seen so far Jean, that seems the least foolish and difficult to understand."

"Glad to hear that..."

There was plain silence as the two looked into different directions, both deep in thought.

Minami, the nurse, didn't know what the hell was going on in the conversation.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Where does Daisuke fit into all this?" Tae asked, breaking the residing silence.

"Daisuke?... Huh… You see… The reason we locked him in confinement was not out of punishment… but for his sake."

"Really? Elaborate." Tae said, eyebrow raised.

"The world is a terrible place. No doubt here and there. The world would have tainted such a person already abused enough like him. We put him in his room, to keep him away from the terrors of the world… until he was ready to go out and face it…" Jean said softly.

"So you're just going to boot him out of the Orphanage and tell him to go save the world?"

"No. In fact, it's more complicated than that."

"What do you mean?"

"We are going to send Daisuke to the next training grounds for his future ahead of him. A place called Youkai Academy." Jean said with a long sigh at the end.

Tae recalled hearing Youkai Academy somewhere. _It must have been several nights ago at Koji Aono's son's celebration of acceptance into the same place… Strange… _

"So are there other people with you on this plan of yours?"

"Yes."

Tae leaned against the wall on his bed, blinking. This was just all too overwhelming at once. The Orphanage is creating heroes to save the world. The world is going to dive into chaos soon.

_And I thought I was going to have a maintainable job and life for once… _

"Oh Tae?" Jean said, amidst while he was lighting a cigar.

"Yes?"

"You're fired."

Tae was quiet for the next hour as Jean inhaled and exhaled the sweet smoke of his cigar for the time being.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke saw Tae's old room. It was demolished beyond repair. He closed his eyes and tried to look for Tae's spiritual pressure. After meditating for a several seconds, he located Tae on the fifth floor.

He leapt downwards and got to the window. He rapped on the glass pane as a nonchalant Jean opened it for him. Daisuke didn't recognize the man as he made his way into the room. There was also a nurse who stared oddly at him. It was as if she could see Daisuke, but only a glimpse or a reflection, not his entirety. He sat down on a chair next to Tae.

"Are you alright?" Daisuke asked, face showing concern over Tae's earlier wounds.

"Never better." Tae said, forcefully smiling, not wanting Daisuke to worry.

The two were silent as they shifted uncomfortably for a while.

"The Hollow came after me, Tae. Not you."

"… I see… Did you defeat it?"

"Yes… It put up one hell of a fight."

"I'm sorry for your troubles."

"It's fine… really… The Hollow came after me because of my silver watch…"

_Silver watch? But it's over on my night table… Daisuke didn't notice… _"Hmm... Where is it now?"

"The watch disappeared along with the Hollow."

"… Sorry…"

Daisuke was silent, but it was clear that he was upset by it.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae had gone to sleep and Minami had left the room to get some medications for him. In the mean time, Jean and Daisuke were in the room, sitting in silence.

"I don't believe we have officially met yet, Daisuke." Jean said, throwing his cigar into a trashcan.

"How do you know me?" Daisuke asked, wondering.

"I am the person who runs the Orphanage." Jean said, straightening a crease in his coat.

"… So you are the bastard who kept me confined for all these years…"

"Look Daisuke. The reason you were confined was to keep you safe. Safe from whatever is lurking out there in the world. Not only Hollows. Something much much worse."

Daisuke sat quietly, looking at the tiled floor. He didn't know whether to accept the words of the man as the truth or blatant lies.

"The name is Jean, Daisuke."

"Alright, Jean." Daisuke said, looking straight at Jean's eyes.

_Those eyes. _Jean thought. _They resemble… THAT MAN! FROM EARLIER!... Should I mention this to him?... No… Not yet…_

"Is there something wrong Jean?" Daisuke asked, tilting his head.

"No. There isn't."

"Oh." Daisuke shifted his eyes from Jean to the window. He just stared out into the sun setting sky.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"I hope you understand Daisuke why we locked you in confinement." Jean said, startling him.

"No… I still kind of don't."

Jean rubbed his temples with his fingers. "I know. I apologize the way we enforced our marshal law onto you. But it was the only believable way."

"But why me?!" Daisuke exclaimed, nearly awaking Tae. "Why me out of all the people over at the Orphanage? Why not Takeshi?! Or Ryo?! Why not them?! But why me?!"

Jean put his hands to his side as he got up from his chair. He leaned by the wall, brushing through his hair with his hand. With a long deep sigh, he found his words.

"Because you are who you are Daisuke Shirai. It's because… of you."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**(A/N): I apologize for this unorganized chapter. But regardless, thank you, whoever you are, for reading this chapter. I deeply appreciate it your time you took to read it. Reviews are appreciated as always. Until next time,**

**~SAYONARA~**


	11. Chapter 11: Time Has Arrived

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Rosario+Vampire**

**Author's Notes: Here it is. Final Chapter. Hope you guys have enjoyed this little FanFic of mine, I had loads of fun writing it. Well, hope you will enjoy this as well as the other chapters. Reviews are appreciated. And as always, please, enjoy. **

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke walked aimlessly on the rooftops of Seoul University Hospital. He had been up on the roof ever since he finished his conversation with Jean. Everything was just a sort of an enigma and he seemed to have been caught in the midst of it… Or, more likely, he's the reason for all these freak occurrences. He began to recall the statement Admin Jean had said earlier in their conversation.

_Because you are who you are Daisuke Shirai. It's because… of you._

He leaned over the balcony, looking towards the brightly lit city of Seoul despite the darkness of night. He brushed through his silver hair with his pale hands as he let out a deep and long sigh. He just didn't understand. _Who am I? Why and what is because of me? What does anything have to do with me? I don't understand anything at all…_

The door leading to the hospital roof suddenly opened, making Daisuke turn around to see who it was. To his surprise, it was Tae. Tae, hands in his hospital night gown pockets walked towards Daisuke and stopped right next to him, also leaning over the balcony banister, breathing in deeply. Then out.

"What a life, huh, Daisuke?" Tae said, closing his eyes, as his black hair swayed along with the cool breeze of night. "Back then, everything seemed so simple. I never knew the existence of this "World beyond us" of Hollows and Soul Reapers. Well, that is, until I met you…"

"Sorry" Daisuke said sheepishly, toying with his fingers, still looking at Seoul.

Tae looked up to the sky, breathing in and out softly, "It was no coincidence I guess… I mean, I lost all my other jobs then, randomly out of the blue, a position to work in an orphanage is given to me… Doesn't it seem odd to you?"

"Somewhat… yeah…" Daisuke replied, straightening himself up.

"Not just me, Daisuke. You too."

"What do you mean?" Daisuke said, turning his face towards Tae.

Tae lowered his head and faced Daisuke. "Everything that has occurred so far… It happened for a reason… You becoming a Soul Reaper, facing that Hollow, meeting me, meeting Shin, everything! Nothing was ever a coincidence. Mark my words Daisuke, fate brought us all together…"

Daisuke though intently over the matter just spoken. He, too, had to agree with Tae that some things were done by fate. But he still couldn't comprehend the fact why all of this either pointed or attained to him.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The two stood in silence as the breeze died down a bit. The warm air brushed across their faces as they mindlessly stared onto the city and beyond it.

"The doctors told me that I will be released tomorrow." Tae said, trying to restart conversation.

"So your wounds are all healed? That's good."

"Not really…"

Daisuke raised an eyebrow, "Why? Are not feeling well?"

Tae slightly closed his eyes, leaning his head onto his hand, sighing, "No… it has nothing to do with my injuries… It's that nurse, Minami…"

"What about her?"

"Over the past couple days, I've gotten really close with her, especially after the Hollow incident… She's such a nice girl … She's new in South Korea too, she moved from Okinawa several weeks ago and finally got a job here, at the hospital…"

Daisuke didn't know what to say but he listened closely to Tae.

"… We have a lot in common… And… I think I've fallen for her…"

"What's that suppose to mean?" Daisuke asked, he never heard the term before.

Tae looked at Daisuke strangely, "It means that I like her."

There was eerie silence for approximately five seconds before the entire rooftop was flooded with the sound of laughter of both people.

"So you're telling me that you want to stay in this hospital because of a girl that you just met? That's hilarious Tae. Really."

"Oh shut up, kid. Just get older and you'll see."

"OH. Such WISE words… Tell me that after the marriage."

"Oh, you bet Daisuke, you bet."

The laughter continued on as the two exchanged further satirical jokes and such. It was a sort of break from all the jumbled up mess of a life the two had now begun to live. It felt good to laugh to your heart's content for once.

All the laughing in the end had eventually subsided and there was silence again as the wind blew on the rooftops of Seoul.

"Since you leave the hospital tomorrow, are you going to visit me at the Orphanage?"

Tae was silent; he remembered what Admin Jean had told him, "I got fired."

Daisuke didn't say anything after that. Tae soon left him alone on the roof once again as he went back down to his room.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke, reluctantly, leapt his way back to Inchon from Seoul. He had to get to Orphanage; Jean had told him to do so no matter what. Upon reaching the wall for where his room was, he unsheathed his Zanpaku-to and froze a portion of the wall that was about the size of a door. He pushed the piece forward and entered his room. He soon unfroze the block back into solid concrete and moved it into place.

After entering his body, Daisuke collapsed onto his old bed, the springs creaking from the pressure he exerted. He had his hands over his eyes as he lay down, still, in that very position for a long time. He just didn't know what to expect next. His life was becoming so hectic; it was driving him a bit insane. _One day I'm just a regular boy, and then I am an orphan, then a Soul Reaper… What is life…? _He then straightened himself up and leaned against the wall of his bed. He flicked on the bedside lamp and picked up an old and tattered notebook. Inside the notebook were pictures of various objects and things; a piano, window, a dystopian land, and a faint sketch of his mother. Daisuke looked fondly at his unfinished work. He quickly grabbed for a pencil and began to continue his mother's portrait.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Unbeknownst to Daisuke, Admin Jean was looking through the small one-way window into Patient #1087's room. He smiled slightly, _Drawing again, huh? Just how many talents have you got Daisuke? _Jean raised up his fingers and counted off most of what he could think of; _Piano, art, Soul Reaper prowess… so many other natural abilities… Coldness…_

Tae sat on a bench parallel to Jean. He had left the hospital earlier than suppose to, with authorization of course. He sat silently, also looked through the window. Seeing Daisuke draw reminded him of the drawing he gave him several weeks ago. He didn't believe such creatures could exist back then, but with firsthand experience, he had no choice to. _Guess nothing is impossible anymore… With malevolent spirits lurking about with good ones sublimating them… What's next? Vampires? Werewolves? _

Jean turned around and faced Tae, leaning against the window.

"I need to tell you why we had to fire you."

Tae, raising an eyebrow, confused, said, "There's a much more important reason to it?"

Jean chuckled softly, "More than you can imagine… It's quite complicated actually…"

"How so?"

"The world as we know it… will delve into chaos… once again…"

"What do you mean by that?"

"When two worlds of great power collide into one, darkness will rein the world yet again…"

"What two worlds are you talking about?"

"The World of Monsters and the World of Spirits…"

Tae sat quietly, looking at the white floor. _So I guess my assumption was right… Monsters… God Dammit… _

"So there was a time when the two worlds fought one another?"

Jean began to pace little steps in front of the doorway. "Yes… It was a time of great mayhem…"

Tae scratched the top of his head, "When was this? I don't recall reading anything about such chaos in the history books…"

Jean laughed, "It's because you humans didn't want to mention those times… You humans were too weak to be on either side and were caught in the crossfire… History is written by the ones who emerge victorious, not the ones who lose…"

"So by what you are saying, we left it out of our history books… because we lost?"

"Yes… You are absolutely right."

Tae thought for a moment, "You also said, 'you humans' what do you mean?"

Jean, putting his hands into his pants pockets, leaning against the wall, said, "I am not a human Tae… Not anymore…"

"Are you a Soul Reaper?"

"Somewhat… yes…"

The two sat in the darkness of the corridor with only the light shining from Daisuke's room. Tae was dumbfounded by all of the new occurrences happening. _First Daisuke… Now Admin Jean?_

"Are you going to tell Daisuke about this?"

"Huh? Oh, no. I am not going to tell him. He doesn't need to know… yet…"

After talking for several more minutes, the two got up and exited the corridor afterwards, leaving a sleeping Daisuke in his room.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke was shaken awake by Admin Jean the following day. He was surprised to see the Administrator down in the cells; he had never done that before, so it was a first.

"What is it, Jean?" Daisuke said, rubbing his eyes and yawning.

Admin Jean was checking his watch as Daisuke got out of bed. "I need you to be in my office in about ten minutes. I'll send Tae down to escort you in that time."

Daisuke, confused, asked, "Why? What's going on? I thought Tae got fired."

"No time for questions. I have put some new clothes onto your chair. Get dressed in them and be ready." Jean said as he made his way out of the door, closing it behind him.

Daisuke, albeit confused, changed out of his clothes and into a fresh new green school uniform left on the chair by Admin Jean. He quickly got dressed and washed himself up by his sink. He thought about combing his hair but decided against it. He then proceeded to put on his new shoes. After much struggling, he successfully tied a messy knot.

Tae arrived at his door in about ten minutes. He opened it and told Daisuke to come out. Daisuke, with no other obvious choice, exited his room, following Tae down the long white corridors that he hadn't seen in ages.

"Do you know what's going on Tae?" Daisuke asked, trying to keep up with Tae's fast walking pace.

"Not sure myself, Daisuke. Admin Jean just told me to come and bring you to his office." Tae said, looking at Daisuke.

"I thought you got fired…" Daisuke began to say.

"So did I. But Jean told me to come to work today." He said. There was strangeness in the way he said it. It was as if he was trying to hide something. But Daisuke brushed it off and decided to keep it to himself.

After walking through several hallways and climbing many staircases, the two finally reached the Administrative Office. Tae opened the door and led Daisuke in. Inside the room, Jean sat at his desk, talking with a hooded man cloaked in white. As Daisuke came into his view, Jean raised a hand to the man and they both stopped talking.

"Welcome Daisuke. You may sit down."

Daisuke sat down without saying a word; all he did was pan his line of sight across the room. The hooded man said a word to Jean. He nodded and the man left the room. Daisuke looked at the man as he exited; He only caught a glimpse of his face… It was as if the man's eyes were glowing… _Weird…_

"Daisuke, I must apologize for the confusion of the morning today. But today is the day you leave Inchon Orphanage."

Daisuke quickly turned his head to face Admin Jean, "Really? Am I going to live with someone else?" He gave a slight glance at Tae.

"No. Not really…" Daisuke's face fell a bit. "…But we're going to send you somewhere. Somewhere far from here." You'll be safe there… (I hope *cough*) and we'll regularly check up on your status."

"Where exactly are you talking about, sir?" Daisuke asked, filled with curiosity.

Admin Jean handed Daisuke a white envelope. On it were the letters **YA **in bold. "This is your acceptance letter into Youkai Academy. We congratulate you Daisuke but don't open it yet."

Daisuke took the letter and fumbled around with it, "But I didn't do anything… Wait, what kind of academy is this?"

"Oh, just your ordinary school for students of varying ages… Just like school." He replied, having a rather mischievous grin while he spoke.

"I've never been in school…" Daisuke said.

"Well, you live and you learn, kid." Jean said, still having the smirk on his face, much to Daisuke's utter confusion and frustration. But still, he was free.

"Anyway, Daisuke, while you are in my office, my workers will be packing your possessions into bags for your stay at Youkai Academy. While we are at that, I'd like to give you something…" Jean said, opening a drawer and pulling out a rather thin rectangular package that had the appearance of a book. Tae noticed that a particular book was missing from the shelves of Jean's office.

Daisuke thanked him as he took the book. "Treat it well. It will give you lots of information for your studies at Youkai Academy. Just don't open it until you get there." Jean said, rubbing his hands together.

"Well, that concludes our meeting together. Tae will take you back to your room shortly. Have a good time at Youkai Academy." With that, Jean started to attend to business at his desk with paperwork as Tae led Daisuke out of the office.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After Daisuke was dropped off at his room, he found that all of his things, which there were little of, were packed neatly into travel bags, waiting for him next to the bed. He sat on his bed, and let out a deep breath. He pulled out the Acceptance Letter and opened it.

Dear first-year student, we welcome you for your acceptance into Youkai Academy. Here, we hope that you will be able to achieve great things in our society. Although, a word of precaution however, we ask of you to watch how you behave on the school grounds. Consequences will be severe to rule breakers as the Public Safety Commission shall watch your every move…

The letter went on and on about subjects and clubs. Some things were very strange however. Some things mentioned various things about monsters and such related beings. Daisuke ignored these things as he imagined it was all a misprint or some rather strange person must have tampered with his school letter. With that, he took a nap.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

When Daisuke awoke, it was the late afternoon. He rubbed his eyes and put a hand through his messy hair to straighten it out. He got up from the bed and looked at his near-empty room. He looked at the piano in the far corner of his room. He approached it and pulled open the hood. He hit the C-Sharp key and the sound rang out. He sat down in front of the piano and began to play some of his own songs that he had made in his confinement. "Alone" and "Teardrops" were some of his many pieces. It was one of his few safe havens in life, music. It given him so peace and tranquility, being locked in a room with a piano, and had allowed him to fully master the art of the piano. It was one of the few decencies that the people here had given him.

After playing some of his songs, he noticed a white note on one of his packed bags. He got up from the piano chair and went over to his luggage to pick up the lone note. He opened the enveloped note and began to read it.

Dear Daisuke, it's me, Tae. After you read this note, come meet me at the entrance of the Orphanage at 6:30. We are going to have to drop you off at your bus stop but before that, let's go grab a bite of food before doing so, it will be my treat. Remember to bring your luggage. Meet you there.

Signed, Tae-hoon.

Daisuke folded the note and looked at the overhanging clock in the center of the western wall. It was 6:24. Quickly, grabbing his luggage, he headed out the door and down the hallway.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tae check his watch, a brown parcel in hand, waiting for Daisuke as he sat near the entrance of the Orphanage, leaning on the wall. Daisuke ran out of the doors of the Orphanage with his luggage intact. He came on time exactly at 6:30. Smiling, Tae waved to Daisuke as he approached him. Daisuke set his belongings on the bench, huffing and puffing.

"You have no idea Tae… How much I got lost…" Daisuke said, trying to catch his breath.

Grinning and he picked up Daisuke's luggage, he said, "Oh, I do know. They need to put in elevators, huh?"

"Definitely…"

The two continued talking as they walked from the bench towards Tae's new car, a white Kia Soul. Daisuke was mesmerized by the appearance of the car. It was very shiny and had a very sleek appearance to it. Tae opened the car trunk and put all of Daisuke's bags in it. He then gestured Daisuke to the front. Daisuke didn't understand the concept of car doors and just stared blankly at the handle. He waited until Tae opened his before he had a basic idea of opening the door. Tae started the ignition and smoothly drove the car out of the parking lot and onto the road. Daisuke stared out the window, still so captured by the essence of the outside world although he had seen so much. As they drove past streetlights and grassy hillsides, the car soon approached the city of Ulsan. It was truly an amazing array of city lights and life; a city showing the mass of the Korean metropolis. Daisuke's mouth hung loose in awe to which Tae smirked at.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The two got off the car and walked several blocks. People stared at Daisuke's strange appearance. Although he had gotten used to the fact of people staring at him, to have so many people looking at him at once kind of made him shudder a bit because of his appearance.

"You hungry, Daisuke?" Tae asked as he trudged along the streets with Daisuke's luggage and his parcel. There were many restaurants along the streets that they had passed. The smell of cooked Korean food had entered both of their nostrils, making their mouths water.

"Uh… Not really." Daisuke said trying to focus on the streets

"Really?" Tae said, eyebrow raised.

"Uh… yeah. Really." As soon as he said that, his stomach started to growl. His face reddened a bit.

"I suppose you are hungry?" Tae asked once more, trying not to laugh.

Daisuke nodded quietly, embarrassed by what had happened.

"Well, I know a good Oriental Korean restaurant about a block from here. Do you want to try it out?"

"That sounds nice, alright." Daisuke said, picking up his pace with Tae.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The two sat down inside in restaurant, reading their menus. Tae knew what he wanted right away; he ordered a spicy Kimchi stew dish, a signature recipe for this restaurant. Daisuke just stared at the menu. There was just so much to choose from. Everything sounded so good. It was not that the Orphanage had starved him but they never gave him enough to eat until he felt full. They only gave him bread and tomato soup daily. No meats. Now was his chance to try.

"I would like the Ox Bone Soup please." Daisuke said after much thinking.

The waitress asked, "Would you like thinly sliced beef or thickly sliced?"

Tae suggested the thinly sliced to which Daisuke earnestly agreed. The waitress took the orders and went back to the kitchen to drop off the orders.

"First time, huh, Daisuke?" Tae asked, sipping his tea.

"Yeah… It's all so new to me, the world." Daisuke said, looking around the restaurant.

"You'll get use to it… I assure you…" Tae said, setting his cup down.

Daisuke leaned back in his chair and picked up his cup. He drank the tea, and much to his surprise, he liked the taste and immediately asked the waitresses for more. Tae also saw something he hadn't seen before. Daisuke was smiling.

_Well, I'm glad you're enjoying yourself Daisuke…_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Daisuke rubbed his stomach after finishing his soup. It was perhaps the most delicious thing he had consumed in his life so far. The milky white appearance of the soul appealed to him and the beefiness of the soup put his taste buds in a trance. He absolutely had loved it. Tae had finished his Kimchi stew as well. He offered Daisuke a small bowl to which he graciously accepted. The soup was very spicy at first but the spiciness of the Kimchi and the sweetness of pork harmonized together to form a very rich flavor. He truly enjoyed his first dinner in the world beyond the Orphanage.

After Tae paid the bill, the two walked onto the streets once more, contently rubbing their stomachs.

"Did you enjoy your meal Daisuke?" Tae asked, burping a bit.

"Yes. Definitely. I never ate anything like it before."

Laughing, Tae replied, "Well. You'll never forget taste of anything like true Korean food."

It had gotten quite late. There weren't that many people wandering around the streets anymore. The two continued walking until they both arrived at a bus stop. They sat down on the bench.

"What are we doing here?" Daisuke asked.

"We have to wait for your ride to come pick you up for Youkai Academy… You have that School Acceptance Letter with you, right?"

"Yep" Daisuke replied, patting his uniform jacket pocket.

"That's good…" Tae said, bringing up his parcel to his lap.

"What's that? The parcel." Daisuke asked, curiously.

"Oh this?" Tae said, fumbling with parcel. "This is for you Daisuke." He said, handing the package to him.

"Thanks, Tae." Daisuke said, setting the package on his lap.

"Well… Open it." Tae said, grinning.

Daisuke opened the package and was surprised to see the contents.

It was a silver wristwatch.

"Tae… How did you?..." Daisuke said, nearly at a loss of words.

Smiling Tae leaned back on the bench, "A man gave it back to me… I don't know why, but I think it is meant for you… For you to take it… Don't you think Sang Hyun would have wanted you to have it as well?"

Daisuke's eyes were wide open, "H-How do you know Sang Hyun?"

Closing his eyes, Tae said, "Thank Shin for telling me."

Daisuke grabbed the watch and snapped it onto his left wrist. The silver was gleaming in the moonlight as it ticked on, second by second. It was a very nostalgic feeling. "Thank you Tae…"

"No problem kid… No problem…

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After about thirty minutes, a light blue and yellow streaked bus drove and stopped in front of the bus stop. The doors opened, revealing a bus driver with black hair and a blue suit. "Youkai Academy?" He asked.

"Daisuke got up, bags in hand, "Yes sir." He walked onto the bus. Upon closer inspection, the bus driver seemed to have glowing eyes. _People with glowing eyes these days… Weird… _He set his bags onto the front seat and went to the window.

"Tae!..." Daisuke said, calling out to the man that was walking away through the window.

Tae turned around and saw Daisuke, "What?"

"Thank you! Thank you for everything!" his voice rang out and he waved his hand out the window.

Tae smirked and waved back, "Be safe Daisuke! Take care!"

"I will! You too!"

The bus rolled on and Tae was no longer in sight. Daisuke sat down onto his seat, leaning against his luggage. He then heard talking in the back of the bus. He turned around to see who was talking.

"…He looks weird…" said a tall orange-haired boy in a green uniform the same as his.

"Oh shut up Ichigo! He'll hear you… You don't much to say you Strawberry Head!" said a shorter brown haired student.

"What did you just call me Aono Tsukune?!" the other boy said, lunging at the other student in a comical manner.

"GAH! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Don't kill me! SHIII-" the brown-haired boy pleaded as he fell off his seat.

Daisuke walked to them and said, "Hello, my name is Daisuke Shirai. It's a pleasure to meet you."

After releasing the other boy from a chokehold, the orange-haired boy held out his hand, smiling. "Ichigo. Ichigo Kurosaki. Nice to meet you Daisuke." Daisuke shook his hand.

"And my name is Aono Tsukune…" said a weak voice from below the seats.

"Happy to meet you Tsukune… Both of you guys are going to Youkai Academy, right?" Daisuke asked.

"Yep." Ichigo said, "I'm going on official business… and this guy over here…" he said pointing to Tsukune, "is a procrastinating idiot. Therefore, he's going because of his grades."

"It's not what you think Ichigo… My dad got the let-"

"Oh excuses with you, you fool." Ichigo said, sitting back down.

"Well…" Daisuke said, "I hope we can become good friends."

"Definitely" Ichigo said with a grin. "I bet Tsukune would say the same." Tsukune had apparently fallen asleep on the floor. "He's a good friend…"

"Well, I'll leave you two to your business… I'll see you when we get to school."

"You bet. See ya." Ichigo said, doing a slight wave and picking up Tsukune from the floor.

"You bumbling idiot, Tsukune. Get up!"

Daisuke walked back down the aisle and sat back down in his seat and just smiled. What waited ahead of him, he didn't know. But what he was sure of now was that he had two good friends and an adventure that waited for him. He was sure of it. Smiling, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

What waited for him… was a new life… And he knew it.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**(A/N): THANK YOU ALL FOR READING MY FANFIC! It has been fun writing it. I shall write the backstories of the other two characters soon. Don't worry. I won't butcher up their stories too much. It will all fit in nicely. Anyway, thank you for reading this far. I appreciate all of you guys' taking time to read it. As always, reviews are appreciated. Until next time,**

**~SAYONARA!~**


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